FateAstraea
by I Am The Prophet
Summary: All around the globe, the evil hiding in the shadows controls the metahuman trafficking ring. The Justice League can't do anything and is suffering media fallout. It seemed like all is lost until they received aid from an unlikely source - The Throne of Heroes.
1. Immortal Heroes

**Fate/Astraea**

Prologue: Immortal Heroes

_Good morrow to you my beloved audience_

_My name is Sir William Shakespeare_

_There is nothing for you to be afraid_

_Though I must admit that mine is silence_

_I will be your narrator for this tale_

_Of a war between heroes and villains_

_Each fighting for a belief in humans_

_But things are about to change with a grail_

_This holiest object makes wishes reality_

_But one must win a war between seven_

_Our story begins with a travesty_

_With a young man who would defy heaven_

_We now go to the scene where it begins_

_Where he makes a wish that will change the world_

*Fate/Astraea*

In a field of flowers, three people stood.

On is a male of average build. His black hair is unkempt, and his eyes are blue. His attire composed of a black shirt, gray pants, black combat boots and gloves. On his belt are two black pouches. This is Ritsuka Fujimaru, a member and now director of the Chaldea Security Organization.

Behind him is his servant Shielder. Her true name is Mash Kyrielight, a demi-servant human fused with the servant Galahad. The term should be former because Galahad is no longer fused to her. She wore black armor with a hole exposing her stomach, black gauntlets and boots, a garter on her right thigh. Lavender eyes peered through her lilac bangs over her face. In her right hand, she held an enormous cross-shaped shield.

The last person is a woman who is so beautiful that she could've been mistaken for a doll. Red pupils like rubies, a red stole, white stockings, and a white cap. This is Justeaze Lizrich von Einzberg, the core of the grail.

The one that manages the third magic that grants wishes.

"You have won the Holy Grail War," Justeaze spoke in a bell-like, beautiful voice. "Not many have orchestrated a war within the interval. As per the rules, any wish you make will be granted. So, I ask: What is your wish?"

Ritsuka breathed heavily. Cuts are on his uniform from the long battle he and Shielder had fought. Unfortunately for him, a spear pierced his heart, the tip buried just below his heart. Shielder managed to get him over to the Grail just in time.

But he's running out fast.

He needed to make his wish now.

"_Do you know what I want to be Ritsu?"_

His eyes widened as the memories began to play back to that day.

*Fate/Astraea*

"I want to be a hero of justice!"

Ritsu spat out his ramen as he stared in shock at his sister. They were in their apartment and sitting around the table eating breakfast. Their parents are dead, so that left him legal guardian over her. Her name is Suka, which is short for Ritsuka. Thanks to their parents, they had the same name. So, they gave each other nicknames using divided parts of the name.

Suka has shoulder-length red hair tied in a side-pony tail on her left with a yellow hairband. She is wearing her school uniform for Atlas Temple, or in this case, Atlas Academy. It consists of a blazer, green tie, stockings, white shoes, and a beret.

"What?!"

"You know, a hero," She chirped with pride. "Like Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman! I want to use my magecraft to help people and fight bad guys!"

"Suka, you know we can't," Ritsu sighed. "The Mage's Association prohibits us from using any form of magecraft to the public. The last thing we need is another witch hunt."

"And yet they allowed the big families to get away with genocide," She snapped, making him flinch with surprise. "I'm not dumb brother, I'm aware of what's going on at the Clocktower. As long as it doesn't threaten the concealment of magecraft, they can get away with anything. Besides, I can just say it's my metahuman powers."

"Yet you aren't a metahuman," Ritsu scowled at his sister. "You are a magus. And if you think you can use that as an excuse, you've got another thing coming."

"I know about the metahuman trafficking ring," She argued back. It was common knowledge considering its worldwide news to the magus and non-magus. "But that doesn't mean we can't try to use our magic for good. Take the Justice League! They have metahumans and one of them is even a magus!"

"Doctor Fate isn't a magus," He argued back, nearly shouting. He's a guy with the helmet of Nabu. The only reason that the association hasn't taken it is because of the fact they owe him for keeping our world secret. Think about it, do you think the world is ready to know that there are still magi out there?! How do you think I would feel if you ended up mistaken for a metahuman and taken away?!"

He soon came to regret shouting when Suka lowered her gaze. They were fortunate that the place they're staying is owned by the Magus Association, otherwise it would be problematic. Ritsu knew that some of Suka's friends were taken away by the metahuman trafficking. The Association wouldn't do anything about it because A) None of them are Magus and B) It's none of their business since it violates the concealment code.

Suka stayed so silent you could hear a pin drop.

"Suka, I'm sorry, it's just—"

"I know," She spoke in a quiet voice. "We're all scared of what would happen if we're exposed. People would look at us as targets for witch hunt or exploit us. Then there's the house lords that fight for power back at the Clocktower. If they get the chance, they'll start abusing their magecraft even more."

"But do you think that hasn't happened before?!" She asked, standing up from her chair and glaring at him. "People giving into their greed, anger, hatred, fear and despair? The various injustices that have been committed against people because they are different?"

Ritsu could only say nothing as she continued.

"The heroes of old faced that when they were still living! Even before they became heroic spirits! If they can do it why can't I?!"

Heroic spirits are the spirits of heroes. Those who have achieved great deeds in life, thus becoming objects of worship after their deaths. They're regularly summoned to compete in a holy grail war. Each of their souls reside in the Throne of Heroes, a place that exists outside the world and time axis.

"This is different Suka," Ritsu said. "We can't just go out there and—"

"So, you want to spend the rest of your life cowering from the world?" Her question irked him, but he didn't interrupt. "Like the rest of the Magus Association, who spend their days wasting their magical circuits away for more prana and power? Waiting for the next Grail war? While using concealment as an excuse? We are meant for more than this! Their legends are what inspired superheroes in the first place. They give us hope that we can do the same!"

She stared down at her brother.

"If I have to spend the rest of my life wasting my magic on secrecy, then I'd rather be sentenced as a criminal. I want to leave something worth thousands behind. The Throne of Heroes will be my heaven."

Ritsu stared at his sister with a dumbfound expression.

Then she grinned at him and began to chuckle.

"Besides, I'm pretty sure that the Justice League would lose to Heroic Spirits in a fight."

Ritsu laughed at that.

"I'd love to see that!" He admitted as he doubled over. "But we'll have to wait until the League become Heroic Spirits for the next Grail War. Right now, they're not keen on being killed at the moment."

"Yeah," She gasped for breath. "I'd love to see Superman get beat a Saber class servant. Who do you think would go head to head?"

"I'll have to see when I go to Chaldea."

"That's right! You're leaving, today aren't you?" She leaned in closely, pouting. "Are you sure you can't tell me more?"

"Sorry, I can't tell you more than that," He sighed. "They made it clear when I called the number on the flyer."

"I still can't believe that you got a job off a flyer," She huffed. "Meanwhile, I'm stuck at school."

"Come on, Suka," He spoke in a tone to cheer her up. "Think about it. Complete your studies, and you could make weapons and devices to aid you and your quest to heroism."

"I know, but…Wait…" She looked at him in surprise. "You're not…"

"I don't like the idea of recklessly risking your life," He affirmed. "But if you insist on following this path, I want you to be as prepared as much as possible. Atlas can help you get some experience in combat as well, just make sure not to curse anyone while you are there."

"I won't," She promised with a smile that said otherwise. "Only if you tell me what servant you are going to get."

"Considering that I'm headed to a frozen wasteland, that's going to be difficult," He smiled, scratching the back of his head as he did so. "Tell you what, I'll tell you when I get the chance. I might do a job well done and get an early pass."

"Somebody forgot that he as a lack of experience," She dryly commented.

"Hey! At least I can do my curses right!"

"What was that?!"

"You heard me!"

They engaged in the last act of bickering before parting ways.

*Fate/Astraea*

Ritsu marched through the halls of the Clocktower, the headquarters of the Mage's Association. It had been a year that he'd been away, dealing with the Grand Orders. His thoughts of a merry reunion with his sister shattered when he got the email.

He found the office that he was looking for and kicked it open. Sitting on a couch, smoking a cigarette, is a man in his early thirties with long loose hair. He wore a red coat with golden ornamentations on his shoulders. This man is Waver Velvet, or better known as Lord El-Melloi. A highly respected professor at the Clocktower.

"Director Fujimaru," He had a sour expression on his face. "Don't you ever knock besides kicking down doors?"

"What happened?" Ritsu demanded.

Waver sighed and stubbed out his cigarette. He gestured Ritsu towards the couch opposite of him. Reluctantly, he took his seat facing him.

"As you may have known, somebody has kidnapped your sister."

"No brainer Waver!" Ritsu angrily shouted. "I read the email! What I want to know is how the heck it happened under the associations nose!"

"Believe me, we're trying to figure it out," He sighed in exasperation. "We assume it had something to do with the incident."

"Incident?"

"While you were at Antarctica, She and her classmate Hakuno visited Cairo for supplies for a project. Only Hakuno made it back to Atlas, distressed. A search of the apartment they were staying at confirmed that there were signs of a struggle."

"How did they even know they were staying there?" Ritsu asked. "I thought the Association owned the apartment when I looked it up."

"It may have something to do with this," Waver stretched out a hand, and in a flash, a teddy bear appeared and landed on the table. "They won this as a prize from a street vendor. We found a tracking device inside of it. We didn't have any measures in place at the time, so they were able to track them back to where they are staying."

"Why did it have a tracker? What reason would it have a…" Ritsu's voice trailed off as realization dawned on his face. "Don't tell me…"

"When we interrogated the vendor, he admitted that he is part of the metahuman trafficking ring," Waver grimly confirmed his fears. "We couldn't get much more out of him before he committed suicide. His head blew up and his body immolated, meaning necromancy is useless."

Ritsu cursed at that. "But who was the metahuman that they were after."

"Hakuno said that she was the one who received it, so we can safely assume that she is the metahuman. According to her testimony, the kidnappers broke into their apartment and attempted to seize her. Suka blinded them with a flash spell and they ran out of the room. When your sister stayed behind to hold them off, she told her to leave without her and if she isn't with her in five minutes… Well, you can guess what happened next."

Ritsu looked down and clenched his hands. He couldn't blame Hakuno for what happened, he knew. It was obvious that she'll just end up captured. His sister, by her actions, was adamant about becoming a hero. He hoped that she is alright.

"What is the mage's association doing about this?"

Waver sighed as he lit another cigarette.

"They're not."

Ritsu's head snapped up in outrage. "WHAT!?"

"The association considers this outside of their jurisdiction," He spoke with obvious disgust. "They'll put out an alert for her, but that is all their willing to do."

"Let me guess," Ritsu snarled. "They wouldn't want this to expose us?! Over my sister? Who is also a magus!"

Waver simply nodded. "They've contacted Doctor Fate; he says that he will be on the lookout for her. But with the restrictions that the league is under, it's unlikely to happen soon."

Ritsu became quiet. The director of Chaldea looked down; sorrow etched on his face at the thought of never seeing his sister again.

_Suka…_

Waver looked at him and sighed.

"Look, I'm not saying that we aren't letting your sister stay missing. Enforcers will be on the lookout for your sister. If we find her, you'll be the first to know. I promise."

Ristu said nothing at all.

"I have to get to a meeting, feel free to help yourself to food in the mess hall."

He got up and walked to the door.

"One question."

Waver stopped, but he didn't turn to look at Ritsu. His head is still down with his hair over his eyes.

"Is the greater grail here?"

Waver turned around so quickly the hair whipped across his face. A surprised expression replaced the sour look. The greater grail is an object capable of granting access to the root and wishes. To use it, however, they have to participate in a Holy Grail War.

It is a magecraft ritual where seven masters summon seven servants to fight for the right to possession. Whichever pair is left standing will each have their wishes granted. After the Fuyuki Grail War, it entered a state of hibernation to accumulate energy for sixty years for the next one.

Waver was on his way to discuss its fate.

"Are you planning to start a grail war?" He asked, narrowing his eyes.

Ritsu stood up and looked at him with steel in his blue eyes. Waver's reaction just gave him the answer he needed.

"No. I'm starting a new war altogether."

*Fate/Astraea*

Shielder slammed her shield upon the enemy servant, send its body scattering back to the Throne of Heroes.

After his conversation with Waver, he stole the Greater Grail.

After the theft, he took it to Chaldea's headquarters in Antarctica. Using his position as director, he ordered everyone to prepare for a holy grail war. Knowing that the emergency system would kick in, he ordered everyone to evacuate the area immediately. Their purpose was to make sure it would only last one day only.

So, they turned their headquarters, their home, into an arena of death traps.

The Mage's Association had sent a disciplinary squad to capture him and the grail, but they failed. Thanks to a servant that he already summoned, he held them off and banished them from the area.

Then came the rest of the masters. Each of them summoned a servant as per requirements of the Grail War. However, when they arrived, they were taken by surprise as they were sealed inside. Thanks to the spells in place, they couldn't escape the area. It also helped when the masters weren't too lenient on working together. They wanted to get their hands on the Grail no matter what they were hired to do. So, with careful nudging, Ritsu and Shielder managed to turn them against each other.

"Shielder!"

Shielder looked over to see her master walking toward her. HE had finished incapacitating the master of the servant she killed. Just because the rules allowed it doesn't mean they weren't going to stoop to killing the masters.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, just winded," She gasped. "It's difficult despite Galahad not in me."

"It will be worth it, I promise," He said. "Let's get to the grail before—"

Suddenly, a spear pierced him from behind. Looking over, he saw that the master he thought he incapacitated has just been faking. His hands were gripping the spear.

"You…" Shielder gritted her teeth and started forward, but her master held up a hand. Gripping the spear, he sent his prana through it and back to the wielder. He shook as the paralysis spell took hold again.

"Despise me or forgive me. Do what you will," He spoke with ragged breaths, but his voice held steady. "Know that everything I do is for Chaldea's mission to protect the reign of humanity."

The spell took hold and the master fell to the ground paralyzed. Ritsu fell to his knees as he gripped the spear.

"Master!" Shielder ran forward and broke the spear shaft. She reached for the spear tip in him, but he waved her off.

"Later," HE spoke. "It's staunching the bleeding. Taking it out will not help."

"But—"

"Later," He spoke with finality. "We need to get to the grail fast! Help me get there. Our war must begin now!"

*Fate/Astraea*

Ritsu got his head back into the present.

It's time to make his wish.

He clenched his right hand, his glove opened at the back, exposing his command spells. This is the first time he won a Grail war without using any of them.

He had come this far.

"At first, my wish would've been for my sister back," He began with difficulty. On the way, he healed some of the damage caused by the spear. But until it is removed, he can't make a complete recovery. "But then she would've been kidnapped by the same bastards all over again."

"So, you wish for the destruction of those responsible?" Justeaze asked.

Ritsu shook his head.

"No. I don't want to use this wish to cause more destruction. There has already been enough of it in my life."

"Then what is your wish," Justeaze asked, tilting her head.

Ritsu took a deep breath.

"The people behind this have been doing this to other people besides my sister. Brothers, sisters, daughters, sons, and loved ones torn from their families and they're afraid to fight back out of fear, hate, greed, and power. Even our worlds greatest heroes can't do anything because the people won't allow it. They're all content to let them and live with the illusion of safety."

He let that sink him. Behind him, Shielder looked at him in sympathy.

"But…"

Ritsu clenched the hand with his command spells into a fist.

"I will not let them dictate how I live my life! Nor will I allow them to abuse their power to ruin lives! These people need to see that there is always hope! That they don't need to let themselves feel subjugated to others! We can take a stand! Which brings me to my wish! I wish that every servant, whether they be Berserker…"

*Fate/Astraea*

In the dark of the night, at a forest clearing, a man wearing a green coat watched as cylinders are loaded onto a cart. Each of them contained a person floating in a tar-like substance. They are still alive, but they cannot move inside.

"What is the status of the shipment," He asked one of his guards, who're loading up their cargo.

"We're just about ready Count Vertigo," He answered. "We're just waiting for—Ugh!"

He stopped speaking as a black-red stake erupted from the ground and impaled him through the heart. Vertigo backed away from him as he gasped for breath. Two more of his guards appeared at his side as he gazed in surprise and shock.

"Count Vertigo was it?"

They turned to see a man dressed in a royal fashion standing under the moonlight. His outfit is as black as a shadow in the night, contrasting with his pale and long, silk-like white hair. He gazed at them as if they are filth.

"Answer this question…"

"You Filth," Count Vertigo spat. "You dare address me? Do you know who you speak to?" He gestured to his guards. "You two. Go out there and—"

Before they could move, two stakes erupted from the ground again and pierced his guards. They dangled helplessly in the air as blood trickled down the stakes.

"—Kill him?"

Count Vertigo at them with the horror of the thought this man making short work of them. HE turned to see him walking towards him as if unfazed by them. Vertigo could feel his eyes glaring at him.

"Repugnant filth!" Vertigo reached a hand to his headgear. But before he could activate it, his hand is pierced by another stake. His screams were cut off as more stakes pierced him turning the Count into a pin cushion. He was powerless as he watched the stranger approach him.

His royal arrogance became pure terror as he stared at him with the icy gaze of his. He gave off an aura of danger so powerful, Vertigo felt hopelessly weak and powerless before him. It was further increased when the stranger began to turn into something more terrifying.

"Filth? The only filth I see is you barbarians," He coldly spoke to the cowering count as fangs began to grow on his teeth and his body monstrous. "With whose permission do you dare corrupt my home?!"

*Fate/Astraea*

_Assassin…_

At Santa Prisca, three trainees for the league of shadows stood back to back. All around them, mist covered the island. They were the only ones with rebreathers as their fellow trainees lay scattered on the ground.

But that wasn't what killed them.

A childish giggle filled the air, causing them to tense up. They looked everywhere for the source, but it seemed to be coming from all around. The fog is too difficult for them to see through.

Suddenly, a rush of air and one of their own joined the corpses. One kneeled down to check. A nod confirmed that she is dead, However, what is frightening is that her comrade died instantly.

Then she became as still as a statute. Slowly, she fell to the ground with a knife in her back.

Behind her is the killer.

She is a white-haired girl with greenish eyes. Her attire is a black vest, black panties, and black stockings. Both of her arms are bandaged but only her left-hand wears a glove. Pink shoes cover her feet.

She gazed at the remaining trainee, who held her katana with trembling hands at the girl who killed everyone she trained with.

"Hello," She chirped happily as she retrieved her knife. "Will you be our mommy?"

The Trainee could say nothing due to fear. Then she screamed as she rushed at her. Without even moving, the Assassin slit her throat faster than she could even register it.

"What a shame."

*Fate/Astraea*

_Caster…_

Felix Faust staggered into a warehouse. His robe is torn, and blood is leaking from the cuts he had received. He glared at the one responsible for this state.

She is a woman in a red and blue dress. On her head is a red cap and on her shoulder is a mechanical bird. It was one of many who attacked him in a swarm, despite his best efforts, he couldn't keep them away from him. Her left arm, a mechanical prosthetic, grasped a staff with a purple crystal star on top.

She had a starry-eyed look on her face.

"AMAZING!" She squealed. "Is this how magic has advanced over the years? Can you do anything besides throw fireballs at me?"

"Who in the foulest things of the underworld are you?!" He demanded. "Why don't any of my spells work on you?!"

"I wonder if you can construct a barrier," She ignored his question and puts on glasses. "I think I will find out!"

She held out her mechanical hand, her staff vanishing. Purple energy gathered in it and became a ball. As she fired it at him, it became blue at the core. Its movement is slow as it traveled towards the sorcerer.

Faust put up a barrier of flames in front of him. When it made contact, it shone in a cross light, then. Exploded in a fusion of blue and purple energy.

The Caster removed her glasses.

"But then again," She sighed in disappointment. "I calculated that he'll use the flames to make it."

*Fate/Astraea*

_Rider_

"Those afar, hear my voice! Those near, gaze in awe!"

At a shipyard, a female knight stood atop a cargo crate, staring down at the thugs with guns. She wore a white cloak over her white armor and her pink and white hair is braided with black bows. In her hands is a white lance accented with gold. At her side is a white sword.

She grinned fearlessly at them.

"I am one of the twelve heroes of—"

She fell back in surprise as bursts of energy flew towards her.

"You could at least let me finish!" She groaned as she got back on her feet. "I haven't gotten to do that in a while! That's like the second time already!"

She put her fingers to her mouth and whistled. Behind her, a beast appeared. It had the front of an eagle and the hindquarters of a horse. Its appearance shook the thugs as the rider mounted her steed.

"Alright! Let's go Hippogriff!"

Hippogriff squawked in agreement and flapped its wings as it took to the air. The gunmen fired potshots at them, each of the failing to hit them. Eventually, Hippogriff flew low to the ground and charged at the group. The crashed into them and they fell to the ground, knocking them out. One was still conscience and tried to get up, only for the Rider's lance to finish the job.

"Well, I think that's all of them," She cheerily said, only for her eyes to widen. "Hippogriff!" Both of them vanished as an energy beam crashed into the ground, they were standing at moments before. They reappeared several meters on another cargo crate where a sniper took up position. He looked up in surprise to see them in front of him.

"Looks liked I missed one!"

Hippogriff grabbed the snipers head with its front claw and rammed it into the ground, knocking him out.

"Now THAT's the last of them. Only one thing left to do!"

She steered Hippogriff towards the cargo crate she once stood. Dismounting Hippogriff, she approached it and sliced it open with her lance. Opening it, she saw several frightened individuals huddled together.

"No need to be afraid," She tried to reassure them. "I've taken care of the bad guys! It's okay to—"

She ducked down as blasts of energy flew past her.

"Never mind!" she waved her hands as she closed the door. "Stay inside."

Turning her head to see more gunmen, she mounted Hippogriff and readied her lance.

"Can't you for once not interrupt me?!" She shouted as she charged at them.

*Fate/Astraea*

_Lancer…_

Two men are loading a struggling girl into a van. After some difficulty, they managed to get her inside and close the back doors. They got to the front and started the van.

"I swear," The driver angrily spoke as he drove the van. "We need to get restraints on these things."

"The boss said that we need them unharmed," His partner scolded. "It will ruin their price on the market."

"You're right," The driver huffed. "Still we should—"

Whatever he was about to say died when they heard the back-door crash open.

"Hey!" He shouted. "What's going on over—!"

Suddenly he lurched forward on the wheel, a red spear piercing through him and into the wheel. This caused the van to swerve out of control. It crashed through the metal fence on the road and descended down a cliff. It crashed into the ground, denting it in the hood.

The partner, still groggy, looked around him. His partner is dead with the blood dripping down the hole where his heart used to be. A few glass shards are embedded into his face, just like him. Thick ones impaled his heart.

Fortunately, he was a metahuman with the ability to regenerate, it was the reason he was selected for this job. He could already feel the shards being ejected out of his body. When he is fully healed, he unbuckled himself and proceeded to try to open the door. It didn't budge so he pushed it down.

He crawled away from the wreckage; his legs are still healing from the crash. It completely shattered them. The partner knew he had to get away and report to his superiors.

Suddenly, a pair of legs materialized in front of him. Shakily, he looked up.

In front of him, a man with blue hair tied into a rat tail gazed at him, with disappointment flashing in his red eyes. His outfit is a deep ultramarine full body tights, grey metallic pauldrons, and a metal plate over his lowest abdominal section. Hanging from his ears are silver earrings. A red spear is grasped in his hand, and the partner gasped as he recognized it.

"These are the guys they recruited?" He drawled. "Not much of a challenge. And theirs the fact that you have regeneration. That's a bit of a pain, but fortunately for me…"

His spear glowed a red aura as he placed a palm at the side and aimed it at the downed thug.

"… I can fix that."

Before he could even scream, the Lancer thrust his spear into his heart.

"Normally, I don't like striking down helpless opponents. But considering you had the guts to kidnap a helpless lady, I think I can make an exception."

*Fate/Astraea*

_Archer_

Somewhere in New York, Tuppence terror tapped her foot impatiently. She's waiting for her brother Tommy Terror to show up. They had another assignment from their bosses, and they couldn't' mess up like last time.

"Dammit, Tommy," She growled in a southern accent, smashing a nearby trash can, "Where the heck are you?"

She got her answer from the sound of footsteps running her way.

"Bout time!" She turned to face him. "Do you know how long I've waited for – Tommy!"

Her words of anger died down when she looked at the state of her brother. Lumbering toward her, he is skewered by a spear-like object in his torso. Which should be impossible because they each shared invulnerability. Nothing should be able to harm them. But Blood trickled down the spear as he approached her.

"Tupp…" He weakly spoke before falling down to the ground, Tuppence catching him.

"Tom!" She shouted in concern for her twin as she cradled his head. She glared at the spear. "Who did this to you?! Was it the Green Arrow?! Arsenal?!"

"No…" He breathed. "Red coat… White hair…"

Then his eyes widened.

"Run! It's him!"

Tuppence looked up to see the man who did this to her brother walking toward them. Like her brother described, his hair is white, and his skin is tanned. he wore a red coat over a black tight sleeveless shirt underneath. Cold steel eyes glared at her as he held a bow.

"It seemed like he still breathes," He coldly spoke as he materialized another spiral spear and loaded upon his bow. "I can fix that, however."

"Like I'm going to let you do that!" Tuppence snarled as she got up.

"Sister! You can't!" Tommy weakly protested. "We can't beat him…"

"We sure as hell can!" She snapped, never taking her eyes upon the Archer.

"Let me guess, you intend to charge at me and pummel me?" Archer asked, his bow never wavering. "Your brother tried to do the same, but he wasn't fast enough to dodge my arrows. As for your invulnerability, it's just a high defense that normal means couldn't penetrate. If the offense is bigger than the defense, it can't protect you."

"I'm gonna take your arrows and shove it up your pie hole!"

The Archer just smirked as a blue aura flared up. "All right then, why don't you come at me?"

"With pleasure!"

"Tuppence! No!"

His words weren't heeded as she charged at the red-cloaked archer. He spoke one word as he released the arrow.

"Hrunting."

*Fate/Astraea*

_Saber…_

A woman and her ten-year-old daughter ran down a street. Behind them, a lion-like beast pursued them. It growled as it ran on all fours to pursue its prey.

The daughter tripped and her mother came back for her. But that gave the lion time to leap upon them. She wrapped her arms around her and closed her eyes as she prepared for the impending death.

But it never came.

After several moments, she opened her eyes in astonishment at the figure standing between them and their aggressor.

It's a slender young woman in her late teens. Her blonde hair, tied into a bun with a blue ribbon, looked as if gold dust is sprinkled on it. She wore shining armor with a blue old-style dress underneath. The mother could only describe her as beautiful as she gazed in awe.

In the woman's hands is something that she couldn't see. Whatever it was, it kept the lion at bay with by its teeth and claws.

"Run!" She shouted as she strained to keep it at bay, her green eyes glaring at the beast. The mother heeded her warning. Taking her daughter by the hand, they ran for safety.

The Saber leaped back from the lion as soon as they are far enough. Putting some distance between them, she glared at the lion with disgust.

"Despite being released from your oppressors, you would submit to your animal instincts and attack innocent bystanders," She coldly glared. "An act unfitting for the king of beasts."

She raised her invisible weapon at it. "This is your last warning: stand down or give up your life."

The lion growled at her and charged.

"So be it."

She pulled her sword back. It glowed yellow as the wind obscuring it revealed a sword before she thrust it forward. The wind rushed forward like a lance and blew the head off the beast, scattering its remains into pieces. The Lion staggered forward for a moment before falling unto the ground, dead.

She didn't spare it a glance as she walked away.

"You never had what it took to be a king, to begin with.

*Fate/Astraea*

"… or any other class to be summoned here and now," Ritsu shouted, raising his fist to the air. "To assist in Chaldea's mission to protect the reign of humanity!"

*Fate/Astraea*

_Bubble, bubble, toil, and trouble!_

_Fire burn and cauldron bubble!_

_By the pricking of my thumbs,_

_Something wicked this way comes!_

_For our foes of course!_

* * *

Hope you enjoyed it. Anime twist I noticed has already been done under another name, so please consider this as a replacement. I'm actually hyped about this because I'm curious about how the Light will fare against the heroes of old. How this plays out, you'll have to ask Shakespeare when you see him again.

I should've done this before, but you all know I don't own any of the franchises. They rightfully go to their respective owners.

Tune in next time.


	2. Hello,World!

**Fate/Astraea**

Chapter 1: Hello, World!

*Fate/Astraea*

_Greater Bialya_

Qurac.

What once was a country of democracy, where people have freedom of speech and general welfare, is now a country of despair. It's eastern neighbor, Bialya, invaded and annexed it into its militaristic dictatorship. Queen Bee had claimed it was a constitutional monarchy, but her words are poison to the minds of those who hear it. Martial law had been enforced upon them, and anyone they deem criminals has been put down or taken away. Its citizens have given into despair as they are treated as objects.

But that is about to change.

In a secret meeting place, an Arab woman sat at a table with two other people. She wore a purple suit with a lilac top under it. A golden necklace encircled her neck. This is Noor Harjavti, daughter of Ruman Harjavti. President of Qurac before his second assassination attempt.

Next to her is a man wearing a blue suit. Like Noor, he too is Arab. His hair is streaked with white to signify his old age. In his hands is a file with a photo of another woman with a golden diadem paperclipped to it.

Across from them, a man in white reached over and took the file. A similar colored good and face mask covered his face. Emblazoned on the left peck of his white uniform is a black stylized "C" surrounded by laurels. The man opened the file and looked through its contents.

"Is that everything?"

"Yes," The man nodded. "You will also find a manifest of the people she has ordered to be _imprisoned_." He spat the last part because it disgusted him. "This also contains contraband she has been shipping."

"What of Queen Bee?"

"She's gone away on an emergency meeting," He sighed. "But Ambassador Sumaan Harjavti is currently at Dhabar. He's scheduled to leave in a few days."

Noor clenched her hands at the mention of his name. Years ago, her uncle had been hailed as a hero for taking a bullet for her father in a failed assassination attempt. He served as a national hero for her country until the annexation. Now he serves as Greater Bialya's representative to the United Nations.

But Noor knew the truth about her uncle's intentions. He schemed with Queen Bee to stage the assassination to paint himself as a hero. Power was the only thing that was on his mind, no matter the price. That way, the people will not question him as he openly supported the annexation.

"I have resistance soldiers on standby," She declared. "Once it begins, we will storm the palace and take him down."

"Not alone you won't," The turncoat voiced his agreement. "My men on the inside are ready to get the prisoners out of her palace in Al-Qawiya."

"Remember to make sure he stays alive," The Agent reminded. "He plays a vital role in securing your countries freedom. Thanks to your efforts, we can put an end to the sickness corrupting your country."

"Agreed," The Turncoat stood up from his chair and spoke with conviction. "As soon as the Queen is dethroned, we will change our government for the better. It is a mistake to put the responsibility of our country unto one person. Because of this, she has disgraced us with the metahuman trafficking and other atrocities. We will redeem our countries name and repair the damage she has wrought."

"Likewise," Noor stood up and faced the turncoat. She extended a hand. "Once Qurac is restored, I hope we can still work together and build a brighter future."

"I can say the same," He took her hand and shook it.

The agent smiled from beneath his mask and pulled out a communicator.

"Your efforts will not be in vain," He declared. "Chaldea thanks you in supporting us in our mission to protect humanity."

He clicked the communicator on.

"We're ready Shielder."

_Begin the operation!_

*Fate/Astraea*

_Undisclosed Location_

Queen Bee walked briskly into a temple ruin. Light shone down from above, illuminating the room and her associates. Like her, they are members of The Light, a secret society whose purpose is to ensure the evolution of humanity. On this night, she was called away from her duties due to an emergency meeting.

"What is going on?" She demanded. "I was in the middle of a meeting before I got the call."

"I wouldn't call everyone here unless it is an emergency," Vandal Savage spoke in a gravelly voice. He is a muscular male with medium-dark skin, rugged features, broad shoulders, and a square jaw. Three pale scars are across his face, brown eyes and black long hair pulled black. He wore a lapel less dark-blue coat with a red stripe on the edges with black gloves and boots.

"_He is correct,"_ Ultra-Humanite spoke from the vocalizer hanging from his neck. He is a large albino gorilla, with the upper head replaced with a brain-like protrusion. _"We've just lost several more facilities for metahumans!"_

"So," She scoffed. "We can always get more. How is this an issue?"

_"Because as of now, we have lost more than eighty percent of our facilities!"_ He roared. _"In just ONE week!"_

Queen Bee looked shocked at the news. "What?!"

"He is correct," Savage spoke. "Combined with Grayson's efforts and the Outsiders, we've lost more resources than we could count."

"This isn't Grayson and his team?" She asked.

"No, it wasn't them," Slade Wilson, also known as Deathstroke, spoke. He wore a cloth mask with two ribands, one-half black, and the other orange. One eye shielded by a white sheen gazed out on the orange half. His black and gray armor sported orange shoulder pad and on his back are two swords. "My inside man told me that Nightwing and the Outsiders haven't taken part in these attacks. Killing, also, isn't their style. I know that from experience."

"It isn't the Justice League either," Lex Luthor, a sharply dressed bald man spoke. "Surveillance shows that they haven't made any action from the Watchtower. I would consider Batman and his team, but he wouldn't resort to the brutality inflicted upon our personnel."

_"I agree,"_ Ultra-Humanite growled. _"The attacks on our facilities have resulted in heavy casualties. Sometimes we would end up with several fatalities. But like our facilities, we're losing operatives and enforcers. Heck, they can't even do a simple mission without being attacked. I'm surprised you aren't aware of what happened to Terror Twins."_

"What are you talking about?" Queen Bee demanded. "The Terror Twins are on a mission to make up for their failure at the auction. They can handle themselves just fine."

"About that," Luthor spoke as if he would rather eat dirt than deliver. From the tone of his voice, she knew she wasn't going to like that. "This hasn't been made public, but seventy-two hours ago, they have been found bleeding on a street."

"What!?"

"I haven't got to the worst bit. Apparently, their attacker was able to harm them despite their invulnerability. I have the projectile in possession, I've already sent it over to our friend for study." He gestured to Ultra-Humanite. "The Twins are in critical condition, but they'll live."

"As soon as they wake up, let us know," Savage ordered. "We need all the information we can acquire if we are to deal with this new threat."

"Easier said than done," Slade sighed in frustration. "Whoever this is, they're ghosts. As soon as they finished their attack, they vanish without a trace. Not even the surveillance could pick up any trace."

"Can the League of Shadows spare some men?" Savage asked.

"We can," Slade affirmed. "I'll send some men to our remaining facilities to monitor only. If they see any of our attackers, we will be the first to know. "

"That won't be necessary."

He stopped speaking as he turned around to see Lady Shiva, an enforcer for the light and sensei for the League of Shadows. Her hair is black as her lips. She wore a red shirt and black pants. On her face is a grim expression.

"Lady Shiva," Slade looked surprised at her sudden appearance. "I'm surprised to see you here. I thought you are monitoring Santa Prisca while I'm- "

"They're dead."

"What?"

"They're all dead," She spoke again, her voice cold as ice. "Every member of the league, trainee and veteran, are all dead. Santa Prisca is littered with their bodies."

"When did this happen?!" Slade demanded. Meanwhile, the other members of The Light are discussing their own reactions.

_"This is bad,"_ Ultra-Humanite said. _"If our enemy is powerful enough to destroy the League of Shadows, we need to focus on taking them out."_

"Agreed," Queen Bee nodded. "Scramble our forces for these rogues. Tell them to eliminate- "

Suddenly, her earbud began to vibrate. Growling, she placed a finger on it to receive.

"This had better be important-, "She began.

_"My Queen! We are under attack!"_

*Fate/Astraea*

_Al-Qawiya_

Palace guards cowered behind cover as bullets flew into the palace through the already broken windows.

Several minutes ago, the enemy showed up to the courtyard and began attacking. They are completely overwhelmed by the firepower they possessed. Somehow, the rebels managed to get ahold of stronger armor, because their shots keep bouncing off. It wasn't just the palace being attacked though. All around the capital, civilians and rebels have begun to rise against them. Their comrades have lost morale the moment they set their eyes on the mob running at them, screaming for blood.

Anyone who could make it is now holed up inside the castle. Outside, the rebels are closing in on the palace door. They are gaining ground.

"What the hell do we do?" One of them asked, panic in his voice. "There must be a thousand of them out there!"

"We're getting reports of a similar uprising at Dhabar!" His partner shouted. "The Queen has ordered an airstrike to quell it!"

"Isn't the ambassador there?"

"He's being evacuated as we speak!" He shouted. "Meanwhile, we're sitting – TAKE COVER!"

They dove from cover just in time to avoid getting crushed under a collapsing wall. It crashed onto the floor and broke into rubble, sending the two soldiers rolled on the ground before stopping. Very soon, they are exposed to the outside world, no cover to be found.

"Damn it! How is this happening? We didn't sign up for this!"

"Then it's a good thing that I'm here."

They turned to see a woman larger than life walking towards them. She is a heavy-set Caucasian woman with blue eyes and brown hair. Her hair is arranged in cornrows and shaved on both sides. The left arm is exposed revealing thorn tattoos.

"You guys get out of here," She ordered. "I'll take it from here. You go and help evacuate the prisoners. Queen's orders!"

"Understood," They saluted and ran to carry out their orders.

Devastation cracked her knuckles and readied herself. She had been glad that Queen Bee had ordered her to quell the rebels. Her frustration over what happened to the Terror Twins needed to be taken care of. It didn't matter how many rebels came at her.

She is going to enjoy pounding them into a pulp.

Rebels emerged with rifles. They fired upon her; the bullets pelted her skin but didn't pierce. To her, it only felt like she's being hit by beanbags. She growled and charged at them, her fists swinging. Socking one in the gut, she grabbed one and tossed another into a group. Then, she charged towards a rebel that is still firing at her and rammed him into a wall. Pinning him to the wall, she drew back her fist to pound the guy's skull in.

Until she suddenly felt unable to do so.

Turning her head, she came face to face with a horned helmet. She felt her feet leave the ground as the newcomer kicked her with the force of a speeding sledgehammer. Devastation flew across the room and crashed into a wall, rubble falling down upon her. As she got up, groggily, she heard her aggressor shouting orders to the rebels.

"I'll deal with her! Free the prisoners and get out of here."

As the rebels ran to where the guards had previously gone, Devastation got a close look at the aggressor. The figure wore white armor, accented with red, which complimented their horned helmet. They wielded a sword of similar color; the tip is pointed towards the ground. Getting up, she easily dwarfed the figure in size.

"Tell me," They spoke, the voice reverbing from within the helmet, making it difficult for her to tell if they are male or female. "Are you one of The Lights dogs? Devastation of Onslaught? One of the queen's dogs?"

Devastation growled. "You've got a lot of nerve tin man. Do you realize that this will not go unpunished? This will become an international incident."

"Hey, the United Nations or whatever had no problem with you guys invading a country minding its own business. No one should complain about that country striking back because they hate Queen Pea."

"That's Queen Bee!"

"Anyone who doesn't understand what it is to be a queen has no right to the title!" They retorted. "If you think that just because she uses her body to get what she wants makes her queen, you are sadly mistaken. If she weren't away on her little trip, I would've lopped her head off!"

Devastation roared and rushed towards them; fist reared back. "I'd like to see that happen!"

Her fist collided with the faceplate of the horned helmet. The figure did nothing at all, neither dodged nor defended. Their head only slightly turned from the punch, but they didn't go sprawling from the force of the blow.

As Devastation is astonished by this, they threw a punch of their own. For the second time tonight, she was sent flying into a wall. She crashed into it and more rubble fell down on her.

Groaning, she got up, cursing at her predicament. She had been able to take hits from the likes of Superboy, Wonder Girl, and Wonder Woman. Compared to that punch, their blows are like pillows.

By the time she got up, she saw the stranger rolling their shoulder as they picked up the sword stabbed into the ground.

"I've got to admit, that's the first time a human managed to make my head budge. But considering the age we're in, anything goes. Reminds me of a grail war I participated in."

She got into a fighting stance.

"Might be worth using Clarent after all. But before we start, I think I shall give you my name. You may call me Saber for now."

"Cute," Devastation growled.

Roaring, they charged at each other.

*Fate/Astraea*

"This way."

A rebel captain and his partner escorted a group of people along a path. They are fleeing from the compound that they were confined in. Thanks to the intelligence they had gathered beforehand, they were able to rescue these kidnapped metahumans. Once they get to the transport, they will get them away from the battlefield.

A little girl cried out as she tripped. A soldier ran over to help her up. He noticed that her knee is scraped. They will have to treat her later.

"Don't worry," He assured her. "We'll get you treated when we get back to camp."

The poor thing just trembled and hugged herself. He sighed as he knew that she's just as frightened as the rest of them. It didn't help that they're metahumans.

"Alright, listen up," He got the attention of everyone. "I know that what you've been through hasn't been pretty. But you aren't the only one suffering. Right now, your families are waiting for you. We get through this tonight; you can finally be reunited and not have to worry about all this anymore. So, who's with me?"

Everyone perked up and nodded. The Captain smiled and turned to see their transport. It is an army transport that has been stolen for their use. They just need to get on and they can make their getaway.

But karma is cruel.

The truck suddenly melted into a silver mass of mercury. Walking towards them, eyes and hands glowing blue, is a young Caucasian woman with short, red hair and green eyes. The right half of her face is bald and adorned with a black cobra-tattoo. Her lips are blue and wore several earrings. She wore cargo pants, heavy boots, and a holster for a machete. Completing her outfit is a black, high-cut, one-piece swimsuit. Around her left elbow is a black band and fingerless gloves are around her hands.

"Going somewhere?" She asked, placing a hand on her hip.

The Captain lifted his weapon, his partner did the same. Behind them, the group huddled up and began to back up. A cry from behind them stopped them and they turned around to see another one.

Behind them stood a man larger than life. His skin is greenish-brown, and his hair is red. He only wore black shorts, which exposed the cracked skin that reveals his red muscles. His sharp teeth grinned at the already terrified crowd.

"Did you honestly think that you are going to walk out of here?"

The Captain's partner fired her weapon at him, the bullets bounced harmlessly off him. Smirking, he grabbed her and threw her to the side. He didn't bother to look as he approached the group, cracking his knuckles.

"I'm goanna pound you into the dirt so bad they'll have to weld you back together."

He gazed at the captain. Then, to his utter astonishment, he didn't cower in fear. The Captain just grinned.

"Then it's a good thing I'm not the one fighting you," He jerked his thumb into the direction he threw his partner.

"He's got that right."

Everyone turned to the owner of the voice. Leaning against a tree, a man stood upright and walked towards them, giving them a carefree smile. From just his appearance, one could take him for a hero. His spikey green hair stood upright except for a single bang that hung over the left side of his face. The Silver armor he wore is engraved with an image if a bird and an orange cloth is wrapped around his body. Next to him is the Captains partner.

The newcomer held a spear behind his head as he gazed at them like a raptor.

"Let's see," He drawled as he gazed at the two operatives of The Light. "Shimmer and Mammoth right? How about you just let these people go on their way and fight a real warrior?"

"Who the hell are – "Mammoth didn't get the chance to finish before he suddenly was in front of him with a burst of speed. With a flying kick, he sent him flying across the field and crashed into a tree. Everyone, including Shimmer, looked on with their jaws hanging.

His eyes gazed at the body of Mammoth and whistled. "Invulnerability huh? We'll, I guess I landed a good opponent after all."

"Mammoth!" Shimmer called out to her brother. Gritting her teeth, she glared at him. "Who are you?!"

"You may call me Rider missy," The man, now named Rider, casually replied. "To be honest, I'm a bit disappointed. I mean all this talk about The Light's enforcers make me feel like I'm being underestimated right now. Does the light really think two thugs who think they're warriors are enough for the job?"

He took a deep breath.

"I CAN'T HELP BUT FEEL INSULTED!"

His voice scared nearby bird's and shook leaves, including Shimmer. Just by looking at this man, she could tell he could kill without any hesitation. With his speed, it will be a cake walk making mincemeat of them.

"ARG!" Mammoth roared as he got up and seethed at Rider. The latter just kept smiling at the two.

"Looks like you can take a hit, kid," He readied his spear. "I'll give you a handicap. I won't use my full strength. After all," He grinned. "I hardly need it with you."

"WHY YOU!"

"Mammoth, no!"

Mammoth charged at Rider; his fists raised for a haymaker. Grinning, he blocked it with his spear. The force of the blow after they connected pushed him back slightly, causing his feet to dig into the ground.

"Hmm," He calmly evaluated the situation. "Not bad. But I wonder if you can do better than that."

He pushed Mammoth back, causing him to stumble back. Rider seized the advantage and thrust his spear forward. Mammoth howled with pain as the spear pierced his shoulder. Staunching the wound with his hand, he wrenched the spear out and backed away from Rider, who twirled it like a baton.

"Come on? Running away already? I was just getting- "

Mammoth grabbed a nearby tree and uprooted it with his uninjured arm. He clumsily threw it at Rider, which sailed over and is about to crash into the group.

"Great, just what I need," Rider groaned, clanking up. "Lancer?"

Suddenly, a figure dropped down in front of the group in a flash of light. The figure raised a golden shield to the oncoming projectile, the wood smashing against it. Illuminated by the moonlight, and by the white arcs of light behind her back, is a woman in white and gold accented armor and black thigh-high boots. From beneath the white cowl, red eyes gaze from behind the black bangs of her hair. In her hand is a spear made of light

Everyone held their breath. She turned her attention to them, then notice the girl with the scraped knee. Dismissing her spear, she knelt down and lifted her index finger. White light followed her finger as she traced a symbol in the air,

"Uruz," She spoke in an almost artificial voice.

At that word, white light gathered around her wound. The girl gave a squeak as her leg began to heal. She looked up to see the face of lancer gazing at her with a doll-like expression.

"Are you all right?" She asked.

When she nodded, she gave an angelic smile. "Good."

"Hey! Lancer!" The smile disappeared as she turned her head to see Rider fighting Mammoth. "Can you handle Shimmer? I'm busy with this guy with a handicap."

Lancer didn't say anything, but she rose to her full height and faced Shimmer. The latter charged at her, her fists glowing blue. The white garbed Lancer gathered light in her hand and formed her spear. She simply bashed her shield into her face and sent her sprawling on the ground.

"Shimmer, also known as Selinda Flinders. Brother to Baron Flinders also known as Mammoth. Both serve the Cult of the Kobra and The Light. Now they operate under the team Onslaught. Powers include the ability to transmute matter into different forms through touch."

"How the hell do you know all of that?" Shimmer demanded, raising her fists.

Lancer didn't answer her.

"As per our unspoken agreement with Rider, you will receive a handicap. Aside from preventing you from harming the people behind me, I will not use my full strength or use my Noble Phantasm. This will demonstrate how futile it is to fight us."

"Bite me!" Shimmer shouted, enraged at her words. She rushed at her and Lancer raised her shield as they began their fight.

*Fate/Astraea*

_Dhanbar_

Ambassador Sumaan Harjavti was in his office writing his latest speech for the UN gathering. Just as he and Queen Bee planned, this will further drag the Justice Leagues public image into the mud. He was finishing his rough draft until an explosion rocked the room.

"What the- "

The door to his study bursts open and a guard barged in with a standard-issue rifle.

"Ambassador! We're under attack by rebels! We need to leave, now!"

"What?!" Suman bolted out of his chair as he heard the sound of gunfire. "This is outrageous! Why are there rebels out there?!"

"We're shocked as well, sir," The guard apologized as more guards showed up. "In any case, we need to leave immediately, sir. Her majesty's orders are to escort you to safety."

"Alright," Sumaan conceded and began to walk to the door, the guards parting as he did so. As soon as he gets out, he will alert the UN to the situation. He'll be able to use his connections to get reinforcements. With that, he'll be able to quell the uprising.

"All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis!"

All of them turned around in surprise to see a red-haired man sitting in the Ambassadors chair. He is foppishly dressed in a green refined, medieval-esque clothing. A cloak is draped over his left side, held in place by a chain connected to a feather broach on his right lapel. Orange eyes twinkled as he gazed at them with a smile.

"All hail, Macbeth, hail to thee, thane of Cawdor! All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king here after! Hail, Hail, Hail!"

As he expressed his apparent excitement by gesturing with his arms, the guards got in front of the ambassador in a wall formation. They aimed their guns at the crazy intruder.

"Who are you?!" Sumaan demanded. "Are you a rebel? How did you get in?"

The stranger clapped his hands and looked towards him with a look that made the devil pale in comparison. "But of course, where art mine manners? You may call me Caster. I am the playwright for this wonderous performance!"

"Performance?" He asked incredulously. "You call this a performance?"

"All the world is a stage!" He twirled in his seat. "and All the men and women merely players; they have their exits and their entrances!" He gestured towards the guards. "Gentlemen, that is your cue."

One by one, the guards vanished into a mist of shadow. Behind Suuman, the door closed shut. The ambassador ran to it and tried to open it. But it is locked.

Meaning that he is locked in with this Caster.

"And now, the main character takes the stage for the climax," Caster got up and walked around the desk. Suuman backed against the locked door.

"What have you done to my men?"

"Ahem," He cleared his throat. "To avoid confusion, the real guards are helping escort the unfortunate souls' thou and the wicked queen have taken. The one's you saw are my shadow actors. They're useful for anything except combat, which makes them quite useful for this performance."

"A-are you a metahuman," Suuman asked.

"Ah, yes, metahumans!" He flourished with his cloak. "The main actors of the stage who made this happen! Sadly, I must disappoint thee. I am not one. What I am isn't relevant at the moment. Break time is over after all."

As he said this, a red book materialized in his right hand.

"Now," The book opened, and the pages started to flip by themselves. "The traitorous brother who killed his brother to seize his kingdom. He who conspired to commit many atrocities to satisfy his hunger for power will now face his sins!"

"Sins?" He cried out. "I have done nothing wrong!"

"False face must hide what the false heart doth know," He spoke casually as pages flew around him. "Now, it is time to raise the curtains!"

The world suddenly became black. When Suuman opened his eyes, he was inside a banquet hall. As he looked around, he recognized it. Even where he was standing, the head of the table where his brother drank the poison in his goblet. To his horror, his hand reached out and grasped it against his will.

"The title of my Noble Phantasm is, First Folio! Start the play!"

*Fate/Astraea*

"Keep Firing!" shouted Cameron Mahkent, AKA Icicle Jr. The muscular blue man ordered a battalion of troops to fire upon the rebels. He constructed a barrier of ice to provide cover for the troops, occasionally he provided covering fire with a barrage of icicles. The son of Icicle Sr. received orders from Queen bee to provide support until the ambassador gets out safely. Then comes the airstrike, the end of this uprising.

"What is taking so long!?" Cameron demanded as he blasted a blue beam of energy at a nearby rebel, freezing him in an ice cube. "How long does it take to extract one ambassador?"

"We lost contact with all of the men inside," A soldier shouted over the gunfire. "In fact, we haven't heard from anyone inside the palace at all!"

"Well don't just stand there!" He grabbed the man by the lapels and brought him to his face. "Get over there and get the ambassador! I'm already risking my neck to make sure you guys live. Do you know what would happen if you go face to face with the queen to tell her how her ambassador died because of your incompetence!? Do you!?"

"N-no sir," He squeaked.

"Then get your lazy butt moving!" He shoved the soldier to the palace. "Get over there before I have to freeze your butt."

As the soldier ran to the palace, Cameron turned back to the defense.

"As for the rest of you…" He began.

"Sir!"

"What?!"

"It's the rebels!' A soldier pointed across the field. "They've stopped firing!"

"What?" Cameron glanced outward. Sure enough, the rebels have ceased fire and are withdrawing farther from the palace. As they did, the soldier began to murmur among themselves.

"Why have they stopped firing?"

"They had us on the ropes."

"Doesn't make sense."

"Who cares?" Icicle Jr. shouted. "It's obvious they know realize how pointless it is to keep fighting. Hurry up and- "

"Look! Up in the sky!"

He stopped his rant as the sky suddenly began to be filled with numerous golden vortexes. Emerging from each of them are swords, axes, spears, and countless other weapons that he couldn't keep count. Then, without warning, the flew from the vortexes like a bullet and began to attack them in a volley. Golden streaks of light filled the air as they screamed in pain. Some smashed into the barrier and cracked it into a thousand tiny shards.

When it finally stopped, Cameron couldn't feel his left arm and his legs. He saw the stumps where they once were, the ice forming to staunch the bleeding. When the dust around him cleared, he saw to his horror the bodies that littered the field. Each of them has a weapon impaling them like a pincushion.

The sound of footsteps caught his attention. He turned to see, walking towards them without care, a golden man. That was the only way to describe him as everything about him is gold. The armor he wore, and his hair is like golden flames. His eyes are crimson like blood, and he gazed at him as if he delighted in his pain. Icicle felt an aura around him that makes him want to wither away to escape him.

He stopped in front of him.

"You, mongrel." He spoke concededly. "Are you Icicle Jr.? The one who made that pathetic barrier?"

Cameron could only nod in fear. This man just killed millions of soldiers and he didn't show an ounce of sympathy. He could kill him easily.

"Thanks to you, I had to waste my treasures on a worthless obstacle," He spat. "But I'll commend you for your pitiful effort. Normally, I would finish you off…"

A golden vortex appeared, and a spear emerged from it. Quick as light, it shot out towards Icicle Jr. as he closed his eyes in fright. When he felt nothing, he opened them to see it impaled next to his head,

"But fortunately for a mongrel like you, my job is done. So, I will take my leave."

He turned around and began to walk away.

"W-wait!" Cameron gasped out, causing him to halt his progress. "This place is going to be destroyed."

"I know mongrel," He casually replied that made him flinch. "We know about the airstrike, which suits our plans quite well."

As he began to vanish, he spoke one more word.

"Also, my name is Archer. Remember that as you rot away."

*Fate/Astraea*

_"Strike one, what's your status, over."_

"Central, we are approaching the target. ETA, four minutes, over."

_"Copy that. Proceed, over._"

The pilot and his squadron flew their fighter jets across the night sky. They were given orders by their Queen to destroy Dhanbar and the uprising. She told them to double back to Al-Qiwaya should the rebellion there continue. He didn't like it, but he had no choice.

"All right strike team get ready. Arm the missiles and- "

Then, he saw his field of vision darken. Frowning he looked up, and suddenly his face underneath the helmet became one of shock. From the comms, his squad is also voicing their shock.

"What the- "

_"Holy…"_

Above them is a floating structure that made them feel like ants in comparison. Through an opening, it is a spire pointing downward. Surrounding it are floating tablets.

"Central, we just came in contact with an unidentified object, over."

"Repeat that strike one, over."

"I repeat, we have an unidentified object- "

"Bogies incoming!"

The pilot looked up to see a mass of white emerging from the structure, it twisted, and it seemed to be headed straight towards them.

"Evasive action!"

They twisted out of their formation to evade the mass. But it split into five and came after each of them. Eventually, one white trail caught up to him and the pilot saw what it really was.

Bones. Skeletal creatures with leathery wings. Its head is a gaping, toothy mouth.

They clawed and but at his et. Over the comms, he could hear his comrades shouting. From the corner of his eye, he watched das two of his comrades died as the creatures opened the cockpit and began to devour the pilots. The jets fell to earth for their inevitable crash.

"Go to hell you monster!" He roared in rage as he fired his machine guns at the creatures. He shot down the creatures before they could finish their work on the cockpit. But as a few more died, more took their place. Just before they broke in, they suddenly broke into splinters as they were taken out by machine gun fire.

_"Strike one, I've got your back!"_

"Good work Strike Two, regroup with me to strafe the structure."

"Roger that!"

The two jets regrouped and began to ascend at full speed. As they flew along the sides of the floating fortress, the mass of skeletal beings flew after them. Wings flapping could be heard behind them even now.

"All right, here's what we are going to do," The pilot spoke as he primed the missiles. "These creatures are being produced by the structure. So, we're going to get to the center of this and send it to hell!"

_"Copy that! Priming missiles and – what the hell!?"_

"Strike two, what's wrong?"

_"Something landed on my bird! I'm goanna try to shake it – "_

Then it turned into static.

"Strike one, do you copy?"

_"Something is wrong…"_ the feed kept getting cut like there is some interference. _"…get away!... something's taken control of my…"_

That was all he could get before it suddenly went dead silent. Then, an unholy roar filled his cockpit, making him want to cover his ears.

"Strike two?" The pilot angled his jet to get a better look. "Please respond! What is going on with- "

His words died in his thought as he gazed out in horror.

Strike two's jet, once sleek and shiny, is now black and cracked with red. But that wasn't what got his attention.

On the body of the jet, is a figure in pitch black armor. Somehow, they clung to the jet despite the wind pressure and speed. A blue plume flowed behind the helmet as it turned its head to reveal a red visor.

He could tell it was looking at him.

It reared back its upper body, roaring again, and the jet shot forward. A red trail of light followed. It was so fast that his eyes could barely follow. It gained distance, pulling off impossible maneuvers like it's a living being, and began charging straight at him.

Panic overtook him and he fires his missiles at it, forgetting for a moment that he is going to kill his comrade. By the time he realized it, the missiles crashed into the jet and exploded. Smoke erupted around it.

For a moment, he thought that it was over. Then to his utter horror, the jet emerged, unscathed. His panic further increased when it fired jet black missiles at him, a red aura surrounded each of them.

He took evasive action a split-second almost. The missiles flew past him, but soon they turned and charged after him. The pilot turned his jet around with the intention of sending them towards the structure…

…only to run int the horde of skeletal creatures.

AS they swarmed him, it slowed him down long enough for the missiles to finally put him out of his misery.

*Fate/Astraea*

Queen Bee wanted to scream.

She stood alone in the room, watching the destruction of her kingdom. Slade had gone with Shiva to Santa Prisca to investigate the massacre that occurred there. Luthor took Ultra-Humanite to examine the projectile they had found. Vandal Savage went to alert Granny Goodness about the situation. Klarion the witch boy… well, who knows where he is.

In front of her, she saw everything. Airfields and military compounds are suddenly hit by the very airstrike that she had ordered. Another feed showed her Dhanbar in near ruin. Her feeds failed to pick up whoever is causing it, frustrating her even more.

She hung her head down, her hands crawling at her head.

"I refuse…" She hissed. "I refused to be defeated by this rabble!"

She opened a communication line and spoke out.

"To all of my remaining forces, I order an evacuation. I am going to detonate a nuke at Al-Qaqiya to obliterate enemy forces. You have five minutes to evacuate the area, that is all the time I am giving you.

She swiped it upward, showing a holographic button with a nuclear symbol on it. Setting the timer, she pressed start and began walking out as the countdown began.

"With a little luck, I'll just pin the blame on the rebels," She casually replied, smiling an evil smile. "That should get me sympathy from the UN. Once I do, I will rise again and hunt them like an animal!"

As she gave a crazed laugh, she failed to notice a dove fly out of the ruin through the ceiling. Attached to its leg, is a camera, which recorded the entire thing. It continued flying until it reached the floating fortress.

*Fate/Astraea*

"Pathetic!"

Saber stood over the kneeling body of Devastation. Their foe lost an arm and is clutching the stump. Saber decided to have pity and gave her a handy cap and limited their true strength. Despite that, Devastation did little to no damage to them. This is what ticked them off the most.

"This is the strength of an enforcer for the light?! A pack of rabbits can do a better job than you!"

Devastation glared up at her, one eye swollen shut, as Saber raised her sword above her head to deliver the final blow.

_"To all of my remaining forces, I order an evacuation. I am going to detonate a nuke at Al-Qaqiya to obliterate enemy forces. You have five minutes to evacuate the area, that is all the time I am giving you."_

Devastations eyes widened as she heard this from her communicator. Saber stopped their attack. Judging by her body's reaction, she heard what Queen Bee intended to do.

"THAT LOWLY…" She couldn't finish and prompted to smash the ground in front of her. Rebels emerged, leading behind them the prisoners being kept.

"We need to leave! Now!" Saber shouted, earning looks of confusion. "That skunk of a queen has decided to nuke the place; we have five minutes!"

Their eyes widened in understanding and they quickened their pace. Strengthened by fear and desperation, they were out of the place in less than twenty seconds. Before they left, Saber turned to the enforcer.

"As for you, live or die. Your choice."

She rushed forward in impossible speeds.

_Assassin! We need extraction!_

*Fate/Astraea*

"Well, this about settles it."

Rider stood atop Mammoth; whose body is covered in stab wounds. They had been fighting for several minutes. While he had strength, Rider showed him how outclassed he is through experience. Several times he tried to hit him, Rider deftly dodged and struck him. When he hit the ground, he hit him in the head with his spear. This continued until he laid on the ground, barely breathing.

On the other side, Shimmer has similar luck with her opponent. Every time she tried to land a blow, Lancer would just block her and push her back with her shield. If that wasn't enough, she somehow managed to erect a barrier that not only protected the group behind her, but her powers don't work inside it. Lancer didn't even look tired while she is struggling to catch her breath.

"You are nearly out of stamina," Lancer informed her. "It would be wise to surrender immediately."

"Never!"

"I strongly recommend helping your brother," Lancer spoke, surprising Shimmer that she would mention her brother's well-being. "The wounds that Rider inflicts with his lands not only pierce your brother, but they also cannot be healed."

"What!" She glanced at Mammoths semi-lifeless boy as Rider jumped off him.

"Yeah, sorry about that."

His words only drove her into a rage. Roaring, she charged at him, fists glowing blue. Rider sighed and chopped her on the neck, knocking her out. He glanced at Lancer with a quizzical expression.

"Did you really have to tell her that? I really don't like fighting women."

"Would you prefer I lie?" She asked.

Rider thought about it for a moment, then sighed. He always hated seeing girls cry and die. One woman's death had been enough for one life.

"Okay, let's get these people- "

"Psimon says stop."

Both of them turned to see a pale bald man walking towards them. Lowering his hood, the brain is visible through a clear dome over it, with strips of skin over it. On each cheek are three red lines. He wore a grey trench coat with a black shirt and grey parts.

"Oh right," Archer said. "This is the psionic we read about. Psimon was it?"

"Yes," Lancer confirmed. "Real name, unknown. Serves as one of the lights enforcers and answers to Queen Bee. Opportunity for mental resistance test is available."

"Guess now is better than later," Rider took a stance, as did Lancer. "Just as long as I don't have to play Simon says!"

Psimon grinned as a red Aura enveloped him.

Rider Launched himself at Psimon as he raises his hands to attack. Behind him, Lancer raised her spear.

"Gun- "

"HALT!"

Caster suddenly appeared in between them, causing them to trip in the middle of their actions.

"Tsk, tsk, Psimon, He waged his finger at a confuse Psimon. "You don't get a part in this play. As punishment…"

He held out his red book.

"… You get to see my first folio!"

As Caster worked his Noble Phantasm on Psimon, Rider and Lancer looked away.

"That's not going to be pretty, babe," Achilles sweat dropped as he heard Psimon screaming. "It'd be wise to wait until it's over."

"What exactly is his Noble Phantasm?" Lancer asked, curiosity in her voice.

"You don't know?" He asked, raising his eyebrows in surprise. "Good, let's just say it is everybody's worst nightmare. Especially for people like us."

"But not to worry!" Caster called out to them, a prone Psimon kneeling on the ground. "I can only work on one person at a time."

"Unless amplified…"

"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet…"

"Please tell me you didn't come all this way to quote a tragedy," Rider groaned.

Caster looked miffed and cleared his throat. "Anyway, our dear Assassin has just sent word. Apparently, the Queen plans to fall upon her sword in five minutes, taking everyone at her palace with her."

"What!?"

"Good news is that the Hanging Gardens are on there way. Ba new is that they won't get there on time."

"Great," Rider cursed.

Valkyrie said nothing. Instead, she flew ten feet in the air and began flying in the direction of Al-Qawiya.

"Hey, wait!" Rider shouted.

"The course of true love never did run smooth," Caster sighed. "But alas, this is to be expected of- "

"Can it, Caster," Rider interrupted him. "The last thing we need is people trying to figure out our identities. Besides, I'm confident she can take care of herself."

Rider put two fingers to his mouth and whistled. Above them, a blue rift opened in the sky and green fire raced down. The civilians braced themselves, but the fire died down to reveal three horses pulling a chariot. It landed and Rider hopped on and grab the reigns.

"You stay here until Assassin arrives!" Rider shouted. "I'm going to see if Berserker needs help demolishing more bases!"

Caster watched as Rider sped off like a green light into the distance. He was so fast that he actually flew. The red-haired man smiled.

"If I were in my study, I would start writing this down," He chuckled as he gazed at his charges.

A shadow fell over them and they looked up. Above, shrouded in shadow, is the floating super structure. They suddenly felt gravity lose its hold on them and began to float towards the flying fortress.

"Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to be the first to welcome you to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon."

*Fate/Astraea*

_Al-Qawiya_

The Rebel Captain rushed to the outskirts of the capital. He had already sent the group ahead of him to get them out of here before the nuke goes off. But when he got to the rendezvous, he saw that only eight people remained.

"What's going on?" He demanded. "Why aren't you getting away from this place?"

"We lost one of our transports," A soldier reported regret in his voice. "There wasn't enough room. I'm sorry…"

"Sorry isn't going to save everyone from getting nuked!"

"That's quite enough. Arguing right now is going to help."

Both men turned to see a girl walking forward. She possessed a wonderous beauty that took her breath away. Waist-length blonde hair tied into a braid; her amethyst eyes had a look of purity as she put up a determined frown. Garbed in armor and wielding a rolled-up flag, she took a stand before them, facing the city.

"Who are- "

"It's alright," The captain waved his hand. "She's with us, this is- "

"Get behind me! Close your eyes and cover your ears!"

Both men and the group suddenly felt something wash over them. It felt like a drive to listen to this girl. They complied and got everybody behind her. As they closed their eyes and covered their ears, the newcomer held out her flag and unfurled it, it began to glow a golden light.

"Here's the work of the lord!"

She twirled the flag and held it in front of her, a golden aura flared around her.

In her eyes, she saw a mushroom cloud of a nuclear explosion. She gritted her teeth at the revelation.

"My flag! Defend our brethren's! Luminosité Eternelle!"

A flash of light shone from the capital, followed by the destructive force of a nuclear explosion. Everyone gritted their teeth as they felt the force of the explosion all around them. It was so long that they wished for an end. After several minutes, they felt a light tap on their shoulders.

They opened their eyes, ears ringing, to see the one protecting them still standing. She gave them a calming smile as she held her flag, showing not a sign of a tear. Next to her stood another person in white. The newcomer traced a finger in the air, a symbol appeared. The ringing in their ears stopped and they felt revitalized.

"Do not be alarmed," She assured them. "Lancer has cured you of affliction and temporarily protected you from the fallout. You may call me Ruler, as I am the one overseeing my comrades' mission to liberate your countries."

Overhead, the Hanging Gardens flew over them. Ruler looked up and smiled.

"Don't worry, we will be getting you home soon."

"Wait up!"

They turned to see Saber rushing to them. Their armor is undamaged by the nuclear explosion.

"Damn it! I barely got out of there!" Saber shouted as they began to levitate to the Gardens.

"You do realize that there was a time limit, right?" Ruler sweat dropped.

"I know but couldn't she have set the limit to a bigger number like thirty!"

They continued this argument all the way to the garden, to the amusement of the bystanders.

*Fate/Astraea*

_Antarctica_

_ "Everyone has been evacuated and The Lights hold is all but finished in Greater Bialya,"_ Assassin reported. She is a woman with hair that reached below her waist. Long ears stuck out behind long bangs on each side. Her yellow eyes gazed at Mash. "_With the Ambassador reduced to a crying child and that-so-called Queen's blunder, I'd say that this is another victory for Chaldea."_

"Excellent Assassin," Mash nodded. She is wearing a white lab coat over a black dress and red tie. "We've dealt a huge blow to The Light. Without her military and political connections, we've reduced their hold on the United Nations."

"There is still the issue of Lex Luthor," She said. "Are you sure we can't just assassinate him?"

"That would make him a martyr," Mash declared. "Right now, everyone believes he's trying to prevent another invasion. Archer of New York already has a plan to deal with their smear campaign."

"And they called me the poisoner," She sighed. Then she smiled. "But I must admit, his plan sound more devious than poisoning."

"A game of shadows is his specialty," Mash affirmed. "In the meantime, we've got intelligence that there's a facility hiding in Egypt. Make your way there immediately, in three dies, everyone is going to die."

"Already on my way."

"Also…" Mash trailed off.

"Don't worry Shielder," Assassin's face grew in sympathy. "I'm as depressed about this as you. But drowning in sorrow isn't going to help."

"OK."

"Keep up the good work," She cut the communication.

Mash smiled sadly. She sat in the central hub of Chaldea's headquarters. They rebuilt it after the Chaldea Grail War. In front of her is the newly repaired CHALDEAS, rebuilt and modified to suit their mission. Next to her is a photo that she took. In it are three people including herself standing in the middle holding a cake in her hands. One is her master, the other is a man with fluffy orange hair. He wore a white and green variation of the uniform of Chaldea.

The man was Dr. Romani Archaman, former head of the medical department at Chaldea.

She recalled the painful memories of the time. Then she heard the words her master spoke to her after the grail war.

_No matter what happens, I will still be me._

"Master…" She murmured, sadness in her eyes. "Where are you?"

* * *

Thank you for reading! See you all next time.

**Dracus6: **I get that you want a crossover like that. You don't need to keep repeating it on every story I type. I mean no disrespect.

**micelzod**:They asked for it after all.

**Guest 2:** I can't promise I will update fast.

**Cookies:** I'm surprised you don't recognize Rider of Black.

**Blazblade: **It should be pretty obvious by now when this is taking place. Also, thing are really going to heat up. Like a certain man once wrote: "Something wicked this way comes!".


	3. Excalibur

**Fate/Astraea**

Chapter 2: Excalibur

*Fate/Astraea*

_Hollywood_

The Hub.

The skyscraper headquarters for the Outsiders. Formed by Garfield Logan, AKA Beast Boy, they fought the metahuman trafficking and the light out of the shadows. As of now, they have become an international sensation. Their popularity had risen over that of the Justice Leagues, which was something they didn't expect.

Little do they know; their world will be turned upside down.

"Me and Wonder Girl surrounded him," Garfield, a green-skinned boy, told his girlfriend over the phone. "And we told him it was either the lady or the tiger. He decided that he would go for the third option which is to take a hostage…which happened to be El Dorado!"

He could hear his girlfriend, Perdita, laughing with him.

_"How did that happen?"_ She hysterically asked. _"I mean, shouldn't he know who he is?"_

"That's what I've been asking," Garfield grinned. "I guess that is what happens when you can't keep up the times. You'll miss a few things like how to not take the wrong guy hostage."

"_I agree,"_ Perdita chuckled. She had been watching the social media for her boyfriends' exploits.

"Now that you have heard my misadventure," Garfield teased. "May I hear your various deeds your majesty?"

_"I told you before!"_ She huffed. _"You are forbidden from calling me that!"_

"Make me!" Garfield laughed. He waited for a retort, but all he got on the other end was silence. His exuberant attitude began to diminish.

"Perdita?" Garfield carefully asked. "Is there something wrong?"

_"It's nothing! It's just…"_ Perdita said before sighing. _"Garfield, do you remember my uncle?"_

"How can I not?" Garfield growled. He recalled how the man tried to murder his niece before his time. After Kid Flash exposed him, he's been on the run from Vlatava and the world. He's currently an operative for The Light and the metahuman trafficking ring.

_"He's back here in Vlatava."_

"What?!" Garfield shot up from his bed. "Do you want me to come over? If he tries anything I will- "

_"It's okay Garfield,"_ Perdita quickly said _"He's under guard 24/7 in the deepest cell they could find. He isn't going anywhere for the rest of his life. At least, that's what he prefers."_

Garfield sighed. That quelled his anger for now, but there is no telling what he would do if Vertigo laid a hand on his girlfriend. But then the last part she said registered.

"He prefers be imprisoned?" He asked in surprise. "What happened?"

_"That's what I wanted to know as well,"_ She replied. _"I'm meeting with a representative from Romania to discuss the state that he was in."_

"State?"

_"When he was brought here…"_ She spoke and stopped as if she couldn't go on. _"I can't describe it, but I've got pictures. Would you like to see?"_

"S-sure," Garfield said skeptically. He brought his smartphone down and looked at the screen. Eventually, he got a message from Perdita with an attachment. When he opened it, he gasped out in sheer horror.

The picture showed Count Vertigo with a long stake piercing through him. It entered near his left hip and exited through the right shoulder. His arms and legs appeared to have pierced as well. Vertigo's face on the captured image appeared to be both in shock and terror.

_"The stakes staunched the bleeding,"_ Perdita continued. _"But the doctors say that he won't be able to move for a long time, even with treatment. The real damage though was his mind. They said it's in a constant state of shock as he kept saying only one word: Monster."_

"Monster?" Garfield asked. "He might be referring to the guy who did this to him. Do you have any idea?"

_"None. Which is what I hoped to discuss with the representative,_" She said. _"I have to get going. I'll talk to you as soon as I am done."_

"Okay, but let me know what you have found out."

_"I will! love you!"_

The line went dead, and Garfield pocketed his phone with a sigh. Suddenly, he heard the sound of rushing feet outside his room. He walked over and opened it to find his teammate Bartholomew Allen, AKA Kid Flash, standing there in his yellow suit.

"What's happening?"

"We have another call from the Watchtower. It's urgent."

*Fate/Astraea*

Garfield and Bart walked into the mission room where the rest of their teammates have gathered. On the holographic display, M'gann M'orzz AKA Miss Martian gazed upon them. She is currently in her White Martian form and uniform.

"Thank you all for coming on short notice," She said. "I'm sorry for the inconvenience. But I wouldn't call everyone here if it wasn't important."

"We hear you, sis," Garfield said. "What's the situation?"

"Thank you for asking. It has to do with a string of attacks that occurred this month."

"Attacks?" Brion Markov asked. An exiled Markovian prince, he is a brown-haired young man wearing a green and black suit. "We haven't heard of any attacks lately."

"That's because they haven't been made public," She answered. "Due to the global scale of these attacks, it would raise panic and suspicion. We suspect that The Light is keeping them quite due to the fact it's their facilities that are being attacked."

"Wait," Bart interrupted. "The Light is the one that's being attacked? Isn't that a good thing?"

"Most of the attacks have ended up with several fatalities," On separate monitors, images popped up. Most of them included wrecked buildings, but there are some with dead bodies. "By the time the police arrived on the scene though, only the bodies and wreckage were found. There's no trace of anyone responsible, not even a witness. We're lucky that this isn't public, because If this keeps up, then it will reflect badly on the Metahuman population again."

Everyone flinched at the truth of her statement. The reason The Outsiders are created was to improve relations with the Metahumans. So far, the public has been in favor of them thanks to their achievements. But it would reflect badly on them if anyone gets wind of this.

"Do we have any leads?" Virgil Hawkins, AKA Static, asked. He is a teenager wearing a black hoodie with a golden lightning bolt, gray pants, a blue vest, shoes, and fingerless gloves. His hair is arranged in cornrows. "I mean, there has to be something that we know."

"There are some circulating rumors and urban myths," M'gann said as the images disappeared and are replaced by more. "It's not much, but we suspect they have something to do with our mystery party. A week ago, a cargo ship sailing across the North Atlantic had been attacked. Survivors have revealed that it was carrying kidnapped metahumans."

The Outsiders looked astonished at the wreckage of the ship in question. A once proud cargo freighter is now reduced to a smoldering wreck.

"Sheesh, talk about an overkill," Bart commented. "Did the survivors give any details about who attacked them?"

"They said that…" M'gann trailed off as a look of disbelief crossed her white face.

"Sis?" Garfield asked.

"From their testimony, they said that pirates have attacked the convoy," She continued to the surprise look on their faces. "The pirates boarded the ship and killed the crew members. As soon as they got the victims aboard their ships, they blasted the ship until it almost became inoperable. It continued its course to the New York Harbor. However, they cannot give any description about their attacker."

"I wasn't aware that we still have pirates in this century," Bart exclaimed. "How did I miss this?"

"Likely because that wasn't the timeline you are aware of," Jaime Reyes, AKA Blue Beetle, said. He is a teenager clad head to toe in blue armor of alien design. On his back, the scarab's lights blinked, causing him to briefly glance backward. "The Scarab said that they appear to have the means to cover the prescence."

"If that's the case, why would the rescued metahumans have memory of being rescued?" Cassandra Sandsmark, AKA Wonder Girl, asked. She is a girl with a slender yet muscular build with blue eyes and blonde hair with unkempt bangs. Her hair is long, running down her back, and wore a black headband. She wore a black sleeveless top with two stylized golden W's on it, red pants with two white stripes on the sides, blue shoes, silver bracelets, and red star earrings. At her waist hung a golden lasso.

"It's just like what we are doing," Garfield suddenly spoke, getting everybody's attention. "They're sending a message, aren't they?"

"Aquaman had the same thought," M'gann said. "Every attack would have survivors tell the story of how they are rescued. Or at least send a message."

"Just like Count Vertigo."

"What do you mean?" M'gann asked her brother.

"Perdita sent me this," Garfield pulled out his phone and brought up the picture. "He was doing some operations in Romania. That is, until somebody came along and turned him into a shish kabab."

His team gathered to look at the pick and recoiled in horror.

"Man," Bart whistled low. "Now that's what I call a stuck up royal."

"You got that right,". "He couldn't have survived that for long. Anyone know who did it?"

"Perdita is talking to a representative," Garfield explained. "She'll contact me the moment she learns more."

"Could you let me know as well?" M'gann asked. "I would also like permission to come over and read his mind. Maybe I can pick something up."

"I can't promise it would work," Garfield said. "His mind is broken. I think that whoever did it to him terrified him so much it might be permanent."

"Anyway," Cassie began to steer the conversation away from this topic. "Is anything else we know about these guys?"

"We have reason to believe that they are responsible for the fall of Greater Bialya."

"You're kidding!" Brion exclaimed. Everyone jumped at the news.

For the past week, the fall of Greater Bialya had been the topic of discussion. If that wasn't enough, it was Queen Bee's notoriety that made the cut. Her Ambassador had confessed to the murder of his brother and plot of invading Qurac. What really took them by surprise is the sheer amount of remorse he showed. He would stop between sentences to sob and beg to be punished. Which is why he had been given a life sentence in prison for high treason in the reemerged Qurac.

The same fate awaits Queen Bee when she is caught. Her notoriety skyrocketed in light of the evidence against her. The Ambassador and the fact that she ordered her kingdom to be blown up didn't exactly do her any favors. Due to the fact that she is a member of The Light, this is a major blow to their operation.

The same can be said for her forces.

"We can confirm that major damage had been done to her military," M'gann said. "Onslaught didn't make it out unscathed from our intel."

"I saw the pics," Virgil shuddered. "That was way to brutal for them."

"Agreed, which is why we need you to be on the lookout for them. We would like to make contact with the organization."

"Contact?" Garfield asked skeptically. "Why?"

"We have reason to believe they have intel on most, if not all, of The Lights operations," M'gann spoke and brought up statistics. "They were able to overthrow a country in the span of a single night. Moreover, they found facilities that we weren't even aware of. If we can get contact with them… "

"…We'll know what they know," Garfield finished. He can see where she was getting at.

"But first we have to find them," M'gann pointed out. "Not only that, if we can try to get them to tone down the violence- "

Suddenly the screens went dark along with the lights. Everyone jumped but didn't panic at the development.

"Emergency power will kick in soon," Garfield assured his team. "We just have to- "

Then the screens came back to life. But instead of M'gann, it showed a green question mark with a black background. Then it changed to a thin man seated in a dark computer room. He wore a dark green shirt and a lighter green jacket with a high collar; the shoulders are a darker green. A question mark is emblazoned on his left shoulder. He has a purple tie with a green question mark tie-pin in the middle. He also wore black pants with a green belt and question mark buckle, and triangular green glasses with a purple frame.

It's as clear as day to who this man is.

"Hello, Outsiders!" Edward Nigma, AKA Riddler, greeted with a cheshire grin. "As you're well aware, I have taken over your systems. With the power at my fingertips, I could send your pitiful brains scattering. But that wouldn't be fun, wouldn't it?"

He grinned at the hard faces of The Outsiders. Growling, Garfield marched toward the screens.

"What do you want Riddler?"

"Taking the direct approach are we my changeling friend?" He chuckled. "Excellent, then let's get right down to the game. Somewhere around Hollywood, I placed a Weapon of Mass Destruction powerful enough to destroy the city. I have laid out some clues for you to find, solve them, and you will find it. Fail to do so, you can kiss Hollywood goodbye!"

He swiveled in his seat, thrusting his hands upward. Then his face changed as if he just remembered something.

"One last thing," He grew serious. "If any of you involve any other players, like say the Justice League, then you forfeit the game. By forfeit, I mean pop goes the weasel! Have fun!"

The screen flickered out, and immediately The Outsiders scrambled.

*Fate/Astraea*

Riddler grinned as he signed out of the Hubs systems.

"Phase one of my brilliant plan is now underway," He steepled his fingers. "While the mice are scouring about, I think I can get back to my favorite hobby."

Pressing a few keys, he brought up some images. Several of them are taken from different places in the world. They only showed scenery, like a field of burning flames, but Riddler zoomed in on an important detail that they all have in common.

"Our dear mystery party," Riddler cooed. On the images, each of them showed a person. Even with enhanced resolution, it was difficult to pick out their face. "Did you really think that you can get rid of your presence really easily? A few of my sources managed to get their hands on these images. Your attire is interesting to say the least, but is that part of the riddle I wonder?"

He looked at three of the screens on his left. Each of them has the location of the image taken on the upper right.

Japan. In the background of a burning field of crop stood a woman. She wore black armor which hugged her body, showing her assets and a red cloak. Long red hair trailed down in front of her. Her hands rested upon a long katana. He could tell that she was smiling at the field be burnt.

Rome. In the middle of a forest with taller than normal trees, a man stood holding a red double tipped spear. The spear looked as if its tips are made of crystals. He wore a golden helmet with a red crystal jutting out at the crown. His clothes barely covered his muscled body.

Nepal. Standing at the top of a ruined building, with the sun at the back, stood a young boy. Long red hair trailed down his shoulders. His attire is a red Indian style shirt with white coattails, black pants with red markings, black pointed shoes, and golden red gauntlets. In his right hand, he held an oddly shaped sword.

He stretched out his arms and cracked his fingers.

"Now, let's get started on cracking these riddles."

*Fate/Astraea*

The Outsiders decided to split up to cover more ground. He flew across the sky in hawk form alongside Static.

"So how are we supposed to find them?" Static asked as he flew across the air on his saucer. They decided to split up and cover more ground. He got paired with Beast Boy

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe we will come across a big sign bearing a question mark," Beast Boy quipped as he changed back.

"Whoa! Your right!" Static yelped.

"I was only kidding Static!" Beast Boy said.

"No really!" Static pointed ahead. El Dorado turned around and his jaw hit the ground.

Standing on the rooftop is a black rectangular crate with a sign next to it. On it is a green question mark.

"Seriously?" Beast Boy asked.

"Well, Riddler's known for being cocky," Static landed and collapsed his saucer. "He wants to make sure to rub it in our faces."

"Noted," Beast Boy approached the box. "You think this is the bomb?"

"Don't know," Static felt his hands along the surface. "But I can feel electrical systems inside. Now how do we- "

Suddenly, the question mark glowed green, causing them to step back. The crates sides came apart and fell flat to the ground. What was inside wasn't a bomb, but a silver android their size.

"That's not a bomb," Beast Boy commented.

_"Correction,"_ Riddler's voice through the mouthpiece. _"This is an android that will destroy everyone."_

Suddenly, the android began to change. It rippled as it began to take on a human form. It became Static's form before changing into the green form of Beast Boy. Then it became half and half of each form. On its chest, it showed a clock counting down from two minutes.

_"Riddle me this boys and girls! It is the beginning of eternity, the end of time and space, the beginning of the end and the end of every space. What am I?"_

The android raised its hand and fired a blast of electromagnetic energy at them. El Dorado teleported out of the way, but Static raised his hands and caught the blast. He redirected it back towards it, and the android just stood there and took it. It didn't seem fazed by the blast of electricity.

Beast appeared behind it as a gorilla and swung his fists in a haymaker. It hardly did any damage as the android turned into a grizzly bear. It faced him and threw a fist forward. Beast Boy turned into a mouse. But in a blink of an eye, it turned into a cat and tried to eat him. It never got close as it suddenly got pushed into the brick wall by static repulsion.

As Beast Boy regrouped with Static, it got back up and transformed into a tiger. Electricity began charging along it's back.

"What the heck as that thing?" Beast Boy asked. "It has our powers!"

"Might be a new Amazo," Static took out some pellets. "Our powers won't do a thing against it."

"So how do we defeat it?"

"I think the riddle's the key," Static said. "We solve it, it might shut down."

"Might?"

"You got a better idea?"

"Yeah, we just zip around like a bunch of idiots. OF COURSE, I DON'T!"

"That's actually not a bad idea," He admitted as he charged the pellets. "Get to work on cracking the riddle, I'll buy some time."

He fired the charged pellets at the android, faster than it could raise a shield to protect himself. They embedded themselves into the chassis of the android, briefly sending it back. It placed a hand over its chest.

"Oh yeah!" Static shouted. "What you got nuts and bolts? What you- "

Then it raised its hands, and electricity sparked of it. All around, metal objects of various sizes came flying to of alleyways. They repositioned themselves around the android and changed to spheres. Then they became as thin as needles.

Static gulped.

"Um, BB? Now would be a good time to solve that riddle!"

"I'm trying!" Beast Boy shouted.

Static charged the crate and held it up just in time to block the barrage of shrapnel that speeded toward them. The tips of the shrapnel poked through the metal of the crate, and more begin to join in. He was beginning to strain against it.

"Can't…hold it…back for long!"

"Beginning of eternity…" Beast Boy muttered. "…the end of time and space…"

Then his eyes lit up.

"The Letter E!" He shouted. "The answer is the letter E!"

The android stopped what it was doing as it powered down. The timer had stopped counting in the middle of thirty seconds. It morphed back into its default form and stayed prone.

Static looked at Beast Boy.

"The Letter E?"

"Eternity starts with it," Beast explained. "It's at the end of time and space. The answer was in the riddle all along."

"Did you just look it up with your lenses?"

Beast Boy flinched but said nothing.

"I see," Static deadpanned. He ran over to the android and placed his hands on it. His hands sparked with electricity. "I've disabled the system. It wouldn't be activating anytime soon."

"But is it the bomb?" Beast Boy asked.

"I checked the system," Static shook his head. "It's just a clock on an Amazo rip off."

"So, it's not the bomb," Beast Boy groaned. "Great."

"Relax man, we still have time," Static accessed his Darkwear. "Guys? We just found- "

_"An android that can copy your powers and could potentially be a bomb?"_ Kid Flash sent a message.

"Let me guess, you are fighting one right now?"

_"Correction! I'm being chased by one right now!"_

*Fate/Astraea*

"Anytime Wonder Girl!" Kid Flash shouted as he is chased by the android. Just like their powers, it took on a hybrid appearance of the two. For some reason, it seemed to have focused on him rather than Wonder Girl. It chased him all around the mall while she evacuated the civilians.

"How long does it take to solve a riddle?" He asked as he dodged a hyper-speed punch. It destroyed a concrete pillar.

"I am the beginning of sorrow and the end of sickness," She recited the riddle. "There's no happiness without me nor is their sadness. I am always in risk, yet never in danger. You will find me in the sun, but I am never out of darkness."

She grabbed her head in frustration.

"ARG!" She screamed while Kid Flash kept being chased by the android. "Why am I stuck with this? This is so difficult!"

"Fou!"

Wonder Girl looked down to see the strangest dog she ever saw. The ears are long and tipped with purple color. It had a decorative fabric collar and its fur is extra fluffy on the back of its head and tail.

But strange wouldn't be the word she would use…

"AWWW how adorable!" she kneeled down and stroke its fur. Kid Flash suddenly appeared behind her. He looked at her aghast.

"Are you serious?!" He shouted. Then he swerved to avoid another punch by the android. On its chest, it counted down from one minute. "We've got a killer android that could be a bomb and your petting dogs?!"

"I'm sorry!" She amended as he got up. She looked at the dog. "I'm sorry little guy, but I have to get to work. I need to solve a riddle."

"Fou," the dog ran over to a fallen clothing stand.

"Okay let's see," She tried to think. "The beginning of sorrow…could it refer

need a t-shirt," She sighed. "I need the answer to this riddle."

It ignored her and brought the T-shirt even forward. The dogs head bobbed up and down, the t-shirt moving in tandem. She tried to walk away, but it kept moving in front of her.

"Wait," Realization spread across her face. "Are you trying to give me the answer to the riddle?"

It nodded its head even more.

"Wonder Girl!"

She turned around to see Kid Flash finally pinned down by the android. It held him down as the timer began to countdown from ten seconds.

Time is running out!

"Okay! Let's see…" Wonder Girl gazed at the t-shirt intensely. "…Superman T-shirt?"

9…8…7…

"I don't think the dog is talking about the shirt!" Kid flash shouted while straining. "I think he's referring to the symbol!"

"OK! Let's see… Superman?"

6…5…4…

"Superboy?"

3…2…1…

"Wonder Girl!"

"S! Is it S?!"

The timer stopped before it could change to zero. The android slumped and fell off of Kid Flash. He got up and with his superspeed, he vibrated his molecules in and ripped out the battery of the android.

"Of course!" He shouted. "The answer was so obvious that we didn't see it before. That riddle was referring to the words!"

"We have this little guy to- "Wonder Girl turned to find the dog is gone. "Where did he go?"

"We'll chase after the dog later," Kid Flash shouted. "I just got word from Blue Beetle, they managed to contain a similar android. This time, it may be the bomb."

*Fate/Astraea*

_I'm at the beginning of time and part of the past, present and future. I'm part of history, but not here and now. In the moment you'll find me, if you know what I am. What am I?_

That is the riddle that Blue Beetle and Geo-Force received from their android. They found it at the construction site of a new skyscraper.

The android not only copied their powers, it combined them. The scarab armor had magma features which went well with the fact that it fired magma blasts instead of the usual energy. Blue Beetle returned fire, which gave Geo-Force enough time to trap it in a burning ball of magma.

The Android is focused on using Geo-Force's powers to remove the magma, but he would assert control and replace the magma. Blue Beetle will blast of its limbs when it tried to fire more magma blasts. But it kept regenerating and continued to fire more.

"T!" Blue Beetle shouted. "The answer is T!"

The android powered off and stopped firing. Geo-Force submerged it into the lava and destroyed it. He rested his hands on his knees from exhaustion.

"That was tiring," He wheezed. "How did you get the answer?"

"I figured it out by reading the riddle over and over again. T is the common thing that most of the words have."

"Really?"

"No. The other's messaged me saying that the riddle is most likely another letter."

"Oh," Geo-Force deadpanned. "So, did we get the bomb?"

"The Scarab checked," Blue Beetle shook his head. "This wasn't the bomb."

"Damn it," Geo-Force cursed. "We took down three of those things and we still have no bomb. So where is it?"

_You guys found the bomb?_ Beast Boy messaged through their Darkwear.

"No, we haven't," Geo-Force repeated. "You think Riddler is lying to send us on a goose chase?"

_That's not like him from what we've been told._

"Well for one thing, the answer to these riddle's happen to be letters," Blue Beetle said. "Static and Dorado got E. Wonder Girl and Kid Flash got S. We got stuck with T."

_E, S, and T? What would that…mean…_

"Beast Boy?"

_Guys, I get it now! Those are clues! _Beast Boy frantically replied. _It's another riddle! The letters are a clue to the real bomb!_

"Seriously?" Geo-Force asked. "So where is the real bomb?"

_Eastside Transit! The most convenient place to hide the actual bomb! I'm flying on over there; I'll meet everyone there!_

"We better head over there," Geo-Force told Blue Beetle as he raised a wave of magma.

"Yes, we should," Behind his back, translucent wings spread. He grabbed the arm of the android.

Together, they took off. What they didn't know was that they were being watched by someone else. A figure clad in white reached in and pulled out a phone.

"I've got a location."

*Fate/Astraea*

"Everybody out!" Beast Boy shouted. "There's a bomb here! Everyone needs to leave!"

The Eastside transit used to be a bus station. Now it is remodeled to be a subway entrance.

The Outsiders led the evacuation of the civilians to avoid deaths. Thanks to their public image, they listened without question. As soon as they're gone, they began their search for the bomb.

Thanks to the android arm, Beast Boy was able to pick up a scent from the metal in the form of a bloodhound. His nose is in the air as he traced it to one of the nearby tunnels. Behind him, his team followed. They walked for what seemed like several miles into the darkness. It was thanks to their Darkwear that they are able to see in the dark.

"Do you think that the bomb will be another android?" Kid Flash asked.

"Most likely," El Dorado said. "Because the others happen to be androids with timers on their chests."

"I hope not," Wonder Girl shuddered. "Can we have at least one battle without an android?"

"We're about to find out," Beast Boy changed back into his human form. Up ahead is a light in the tunnel. "I can smell somebody up ahead. Three guesses who."

"Riddler."

They exited the tunnel and into a well-lit room. It looked to be an abandoned station for the subway. At the end of the room, is a wall of computer monitors with a high back chair. It swiveled back to reveal a grinning Riddler. The latter held a question mark cane.

"Congratulations, Outsiders!" He spread his hands. "You've made it to the bonus round!"

"Bonus round?" Beast Boy growled. "Is everything a game to you?"

"Of course," Riddler shrugged. "Life is one big riddle, one that is always difficult to solve."

"I don't get what you said," Wonder Girl cracked her knuckles. "But why are you doing this?"

"Tsk, tsk, Wonder Girl," Riddler said. "First you've got to get past my riddle. Riddle me this boys and girls: who is the ultimate enemy?"

He pressed a button on his cane.

Above him, several more androids descended. They landed on the ground in a crouch and stood up. Each of them morphed into the appearance of the Outsiders. The only difference between the parties is the glowing red eyes.

"The answer: You!"

"Great, more androids," Static groaned.

"At least it's not just an android Wonder Girl," Beast Boy Quipped.

"Hey! I never asked to deal with several of them."

"We'll argue later," Beast Boy got serios. "If these get loose, they can cause massive damage! Who's up for sending these guys to the scrap heap?"

"I am!"

They got into fighting positions.

"Alright gang," Beast Boy said as they got ready to battle. "Let's do this!"

He turned into a tiger and lead the charge against their doubles.

Beast Boy's double turned into a similar tiger and lunged to meet him. They tumble to the ground, biting and clawing at each other. Beast Boy changed tactics and turned into a gorilla, which grabbed the tiger by the tail and flung it to a wall. The android growled and got up to transform into a similar gorilla. Both gorillas charged at each other and grappled.

His team is having trouble with their doubles as well. Blue Beetle engaged his double in a duel of lasers. Static and his double are blasting electromagnetic energy at each other. Wonder Girl engaged hers in a fistfight. Kid Flash zipped around the room with his double, trading blows with it. Geo-Force became encased in magma armor and traded blows with his double, who had done the same thing.

Riddler watched the fight with glee.

"You won't win against them!" He sang. "These new Amazo androids have been monitoring you all over the news. They're even programmed to counter your every move. You're just like a solved riddle to them!"

Beast boy flew into a wall in gorilla form. As he changed back, groaning from the pain, he suddenly grinned.

"In that case, we have but one solution…"

He turned into a rhino and charged forward. The Gorilla got ready to grapple, but Beast Boy instead charged towards the hand locked Wonder Girls. He got the Android with his horn and impaled it. Then he threw it across the room.

"…we switch dance partners!"

Everyone got the message. Geo-Force proceeded to pin the Beast Boy double against the wall and pound it into it. It fell to the ground in a heap.

Static electrocuted the Blue Beetle double, short-circuiting its weapons system. His double tried to blast him away, but not after Kid Flash stabbed a sharp lead pipe into his chassis.

The Kid Flash double tried to rush at an unaware Geo-Force, only to trip upon a golden lasso. As it fell, the Wonder Girl grasped its head and crushed the skull like an apple. She proceeded to lift it up and smash it into the ground.

That left Blue Beetle with the Geo-Force look alike. Blue Beetle gulped as it loomed over him in its magma armor.

"Okay…" He muttered to the scarab on his back. "Any idea on how to deal with this guy? One that is not lethal."

It blinked in tandem. Its message sent a surprised look on his face.

"We have something like that?!" He exclaimed. "You should have told me sooner!"

His arms shifted in front of him into cannons. He aimed them at the android and fired. Instead of a blue energy blast, it shot a white flame. When it made contact with the android, it began to freeze. The magma cooled down until eventually, it became encased in ice.

"That takes care of that," He said. Then he turned to the Riddler. "Now on to business."

"I suppose someone of your brains would think this is over," Riddler slicked back his hair. "But I suppose that I should expect that of nimrods like you."

"Nimrods!" Geo-Force shouted. "We've just beaten your machines! Would a- "

"Not yet!" Riddler pointed forward. "Look!"

Everyone looked, and to their horror, the androids began to pick themselves up. In the Geo-Force androids' case, it heated itself up and busted from the ice. The Kid Flash android got up and repaired the damage to its skull.

"So what?" Beast Boy shouted as they charged towards a different double. "We'll just beat them again!"

"As I said, the ultimate enemy..."

Then to their shock, the different partners they had selected began to change. Beast Boy thought he was fighting a double of Static, but instead, he was fighting himself again.

"…Is you."

"What the heck?" Beast Boy shouted before the double turned into a Gorilla and grabbed his head. Before he could transform, the gorilla rammed his head into the wall in succession. Beast Boy eventually stopped moving and fell to the ground.

His teammates also suffered the same fate. Wonder girl ended up getting tied up with her own lasso. Blue Beetle's activated a tech dampening field which forced him to cease functionality. Geo-Force ended up trapped in boiling magma. Static got grounded by his double, who bent metal to restrain him. But it was Kid Flash who suffered the worst.

"ARG!" He screamed as his double shoved an iron stake into his leg. He fell to the ground as the doubles closed in on them.

"Kid Flash!" Blue Beetle screamed. He cursed at being unable to move.

Riddler laughed as Beast Boy finally regained consciousness.

"These androids were specifically made to fight you!" He declared. "Even if you traded partners, they would change into whoever they are facing! Not only that, they learn from experience. They're even better than the original Amazo!"

"You wait Riddler," Beast Boy growled. He still couldn't feel any strength. "You'll get what's coming to you."

"I can wait all day to solve that riddle," He chuckled. Then he shrugged. "I suppose before I destroy you that I should tell you why I am doing this. I'm sure that you're aware of the strange attacks on us."

"You mean…" Wonder Girl asked with wide eyes.

"Exactly," He held his thumb up. "This was all to get the attention of the mysterious organization. I'm sure that you wanted the same thing as us, right? I know you and my employers don't like unexpected riddles."

"That doesn't mean we put innocent people in danger!" Geo-Force shouted from his magma prison.

"Whatever it takes to solve the greatest mysteries my friend," Riddler twirled his cane. "To obtain something, one must give something in return. Surely they taught you that?"

He set his cane down and sat down.

"I'm going to go back to cracking the riddles," He turned to face the screens again. "It's a shame they didn't appear today. But I suppose we could try again. In the meantime, androids: destroy the Outsiders!"

The Outsiders looked up to see their doubles prepared to end their lives.

"Just so you guys know," Beast Boy addressed his team. "It's been an honor fighting alongside you guys."

His team nodded in acknowledgment.

"Same here my friend," Geo-Force said. "Same here."

They closed their eyes as if to accept the inevitable death. IT was fun while it lasted, but eventually, it had to come to this. Someone else will take up the fight in their stead. The fight against the light in the spotlight.

"Do not be so quick to accept death."

A woman's voice cut through the room. This is followed by the sound of a classic sword slash. The Outsiders opened their eyes to see the doubles stop in motion. Then one by one, the suddenly fell apart. The damage they suffered looked as if they had been cut by a high-pressured water cutter.

But their attention wasn't on them. It was the young woman who stood in between them.

She stood, clad in armor over a blue dress. Blonde hair is tied into a bun with a ribbon. Her hands looked as if they are holding something, but they couldn't see it. The way that she carried herself looked dignified as if she were a monarch.

Above all, they could only describe her as beautiful.

"Is everyone alright?" She asked, her green eyes furrowing in concern.

They could only nod at the stranger who suddenly appeared before them. She smiled in relief, but that disappeared as she turned her attention to the man sitting in the chair. The Riddler turned around the moment he heard the Androids fall to pieces.

"OK," He said slowly. "Can't say I've seen you around before. Are you a new recruit for these Outsiders?"

"Not quite," She curtly replied. "But you can say that my group has similar goals as theirs. One of which includes the dissolution of your organization."

"Organization?" Riddler asked quizzically. Then his face became one of realization, then of joy. "You must be part of the group attacking us! So, my experiment worked after all!"

"Experiment?" She asked vehemently and pointed to the wreckage of the androids. "You would endanger the people around us with these weapons over an experiment?"

"What else are we supposed to do?" He asked. "You didn't exactly leave any contact information. Desperate time call for desperate measures."

"Edward Nigma, AKA Riddler," Saber said. "Because of you, many people would've died today. If these people hadn't stopped you, then you would've succeeded. Instead of accepting defeat, you proceed to continue with this goal in mind."

She lifted her invisible weapon and held it in front of her.

"You may call me Saber! Prepare yourself!"

Riddler looked astonished at her bold declaration. Then he sighed in exasperation.

"Melodramatics these days," He picked up his cane. "They say that the bigger the talk the weaker the man.

He pressed a button on his cane. Instantly, more androids descended the ceiling, taking up a lot of the room.

"I'll leave you to my toys," He said. "Meanwhile, I'll get to work on cracking on you. Have fun!"

The androids blinked red. But before they could even move a metal finger, Saber moved into action. Wind surrounded her weapon as she swung it, somehow it turned to gold. An arch of golden wind flew from her slash, slicing through the horde of androids. Some of them surged forward, but then wind gathered around her weapon, and a horizontal tornado surged forward and sent them flying into each other. Saber took advantage of this and lopped their heads off in breakneck pace.

Riddler just stood there with his jaw hanging open. The Outsiders shared similar reactions.

Saber turned her attention to Riddler. Within seconds, she is in front of him, holding her invisible weapon to his throat. He backed against his screens.

"H-how? How did you-"

"Your androids may be powerful," She answered with steel in her voice. Her green eyes glared into his. "But even they need time to assume the form needed for combat. If someone were to cut them down before that, it would be over before you know it. Your mistake is putting more reliance into your machines, not taking this into account."

She pressed her weapon further to his neck.

"You have lost. Surrender now."

She thought that he would've given up at that point. To her surprise, he just chuckled.

"I think you'll find that your wrong dear," He said as he pressed the last button on his cane before she could stop him.

Behind her, she heard the sound of something heavy landing. Turning her head just a fraction, she saw an even bigger android. It appeared to be an amalgamation of every outsider on the team. Its chassis resembles that of Blue Beetles, but it's also outlined with electric blue circuitry. On its arms and legs, they appeared to be made of magma but with bestial features. Its head is reminiscent of a beast. On its chest appeared to be a mixture of emblems.

It growled at her.

"Here is my newly improved android," Riddler cackled with glee. "Unlike the others, it gathers data from its brothers and sisters. It combines their powers to form the ultimate fighting machine!"

Saber glared at him. "So, this is the WMD you were planning to unleash!"

"Exactly," Riddler said as if it were obvious. "Now that I've got your attention, I can proceed to phase three of my plans: taking you out. All right my big amalgamation of science, attack this woman here and-!"

He didn't say anymore as Saber hit him with the pommel of her weapon, knocking her out. She turned to see the android preparing an attack. It's beast head reared back, the magma forming at its mouth.

She turned her gaze to see Kid Flash in the line of fire. Grabbing Riddler's unconscious body, she dashed forward and grabbed him as well. Saber managed to get them out in time to avoid the stream of magma that spewed from the android's mouth. It melted the computers and reduced them to a burning mess.

She carried the two towards the awaiting Outsiders. Dumping Riddler, she kneeled down and gently laid Kid Flash on the ground.

"I've sent for medical help," Saber told them. "and the police. Get these two out of here."

"What about you?" Beast Boy asked.

"That android is focused on me," She got up. "I'll drive it away from here. You guys get to safety."

"Hey! Wait a minute!" Geo-Force protested but couldn't stop her as she dashed to a nearby wall. With her weapon, she smashed the wall and ran through the hole. The android roared and barreled after her with super speed. It smashed more of the wall and pursued her into the night.

"What should we do?" Wonder Girl asked.

Beast Boy looked to where Saber had run off and frowned.

*Fate/Astraea*

Saber dashed through the streets of Hollywood, the android following behind her at super speed. As it ran on all fours, it's back opened up and deployed four cannons. Two of them fired focused streams of magma while the other two fired beams of electromagnetic energy. When it got close, it attempted to swipe at her with its magma claws.

Saber avoided it with ease but flinched when they nearly killed passersby.

_That thing will kill someone if I don't end it here,_ she thought. _I can't stop without risking more damage to the city than now. Yet by the time I get to a secluded area, there would be severe casualties._

Her mind flashed to memories.

_A bloody battle with knights similar to herself…_

_ Two knights standing over a pile of corpses, about to kill each other…_

She developed a determined look.

_Guess I have no choice._

She turned the corner and took up position in the middle of the road. Even now, she could hear the android's approach. If she timed this wrong, the android will continue wreaking havoc.

"It may have the ability to learn the powers and skills of an individual," Saber declared. "But here is one thing it can't learn in a short span of time."

The android flew forward from the street.

"Control!"

She held her weapon in front of her, the tip facing down. The air around it dissipated, revealing it to be a claymore with a gold and blue hilt.

"The gathering of the star. The shining torrent of life."

Saber then lifted her sword high above her head, the tip facing the night sky. Her sword glowed, and a golden aura flared up around her as golden particles gathered around it.

"Take this! Ex…"

Before she could continue, she saw something in the corner of her eye that made her hesitate. Six androids are closing in around her, still damaged from the thrashing she gave them. They rushed at her at an attempt to stop her, as if the realized that what she is about to do is more dangerous to them. Some of them, however, went after civilians in an attempt to get her to stop.

_Dammit!_

Then, in a flash, the androids rushing at her were set upon by three people. A green elephant grabbed one with its tusk and crushed it. Geo-Force enveloped one in a blob of hot lava. Static fried his android's circuitry.

The civilians suddenly vanished in a flash of yellow. The androids that tried to assault them suddenly found themselves to the fury of Wonder Girl and Blue Beetle. Wonder girl smashed an android while Blue Beetle bisected one.

Beast Boy transformed back into his human form and glanced at Saber.

"Finish it!"

Saber was caught by surprise at their sudden appearance. But she nodded and focused on the android charging at her.

"EXCALIBUR!"

She brought her sword down, sending a golden wave of light towards the android. It didn't even have time to dodge as the light washed over it. Its chassis cracked under the energy of the attack before finally shattered into oblivion. The leftover energy traveled down the street before finally dissipating.

Silence filled the air.

Saber observed her work. Stabbing her sword into the ground and rested her hands upon it. She allowed the silence to reign, not breaking it.

She didn't even appear winded by that blast of energy.

Footsteps are heard behind her.

Glancing behind her, she saw the Outsiders gathers. Kid Flash is also present, his leg is still in need of recovery. The others look worse for wear, but they are alright.

Beast Boy stepped forward.

"I want to ask you something if you don't mind Saber."

Saber nodded her consent.

"Are you with the organization attacking The Lights' facilities?"

Once again, Saber nodded as she turned to face them.

"I am, and while I understand you have questions, now isn't the place."

Around her, people in white uniforms appeared with hoods up. The Outsiders got defensive before Saber reassured them with a hand.

"They're with me," She assured. "They'll handle the clean-up while we get to somewhere else. We have much to discuss."

*Fate/Astraea*

_New York_

At a five-star restaurant, a meeting is taking place.

A man of fifty-five years sat in a chair. His white hair is slicked back with a single strand hanging over his left eye. A black gloved hand stroked a white mustache. He wore a white long-sleeved shirt, a maroon vest, a black cloak with blue underneath, black pinstripe pants, and dress shoes. On his right side, a cane leaned against him.

Standing next to him is a lovely young girl clad in a white dress and thigh high boots, carrying a giant mace. Her eyes are hidden behind her long pink hair. Wear her ears might have been is a golden apparatus. The same color as the horn on her forehead.

Across from them is a young man in a blue hoodie and jeans. His hood is pulled up which obscured most of his face. Gloves covered his hands and he also wore travel boots.

"You must try the roast pig here," The elder insisted. "You'll find it quite delicious."

"Thanks, M, but I need to get down to business," The hood said. "Do you have anything?"

"It took a lot of digging," The Elder took out a file and slid it over to him. Paper clipped to the front is the image of an Arabian girl wearing a shawl. "But I found a way to get you to your destination."

"Violet Harper?" He asked skeptically as he opened the file. "Let see… According to this, her powers vary on the aura. That's pretty cool! So, Indigo allows her to make boom tubes?"

"Yes," M nodded. "That should get to your destination pronto. But considering her circumstances, I doubt she'll be willing to help."

"Circumstances?" The hood flipped over a paper. From beneath the hood, eyes widened. "Wait! So, she's- "

"Yes, she is dying," M solemnly nodded. "Dr. Helga Jace wrote a report about it. Remember…"

"What you don't know can't hurt you," The Hood groaned as he got up from his chair. "Is the team in place?"

"Yes, they are in position as we speak," M gave a sinister smile. "Just waiting for them to take the bait."

"Yeah," The Hood agreed, but his mind seemed to be off somewhere. "Have fun in New York M."

He began to walk away from the table, but before he got far, he felt someone grab his wrist. Turning around, he saw that the girl had grasped it and is holding out a bouquet of flowers.

"Is this for me?" He asked.

She grunted in assent.

"Thank you," He smiled as he took it. "They look lovely."

"She selected the best," M smiled warmly at her. "Which reminds me, did you hear the news about Luthor?"

The Hood glanced at him, then smirked.

"I heard. It's a pity that I can't attend the joyous occasion."

*Fate/Astraea*

Luthor woke up to a hangover.

Sitting up, he found himself in an unfamiliar apartment. It was a mess. Beer bottles littered the floor and packets were opened. He didn't want to know what was in those packets.

"Ugh…" He groaned. "…What happened?"

He tried to rack his brain, but his brain was coming up on blank.

The sheet came off him, and it was then he realized his clothing is gone. He grabbed the sheet in an attempt to cover himself. Just then, his phone rang showing Mercy.

He grabbed it and took the call.

"Mercy! Where the hell are you?!"

"You told me to take the day off sir," Mercy Graves replied, surprise in her voice. "You wanted to celebrate your bachelor party along with your associates."

"Bachelor party?" Luthor demanded. "What a bachelor party?"

"Sir, are you alright?" Mercy had a trace concern in her voice.

"No, I am not!" He nearly shouted. "I just woke up naked in an apartment filled with beer and drugs. Also, I have no recollection of the events of last night!"

"None sir?" Mercy asked. "Would you like me to bring your suit to you?"

"Yes, anything is better than standing here naked!"

"I'm on my way, sir. You're going to be late for your important day."

"Thank you," Luthor sighed in relief. Then the last part registered. "Mercy? What's on the schedule today?"

"Sir?"

"Don't make me ask again," Luthor narrowed his eyes as he walked into the living space.

"It's just that…" She trailed off.

"Just spit it out, Mercy," Luthor snarled. "I didn't pay you to- "

"You don't remember your wedding?"

Luthor felt his heart leap into his throat.

"Wedding? What wedding?"

"It's all over the news sir," Mercy plainly replied.

Luthor fumbled for the remote and turned the TV on. It showed a news channel with a headline that made Luthor's head go even more round.

_Secretary-General Wedding_

_ "Breaking News,"_ The newscaster spoke. _"Today is the day Secretary-General Luthor finally ties the knot! That's right folks, Lex Luthor is getting married today!"_

Luthor stood speechless for a moment.

"WHEN THE HELL DID THIS HAPPEN?!"

While he was screaming, he didn't know he was being overheard. She is a young lady whose clothes barely concealed her body. Her body is adorned with golden accessories and dressed in purple stockings, arm covers, and a see-through sheet that covered her torso. Silver hair shook and red eyes are filled with sadistic joy as she heard Luthor squirm.

"This is only the beginning," She giggled. "After all, as the saying goes, love conquers all!"

* * *

Thank you all for reading, let me know what you think.

**VGBlackwing**: I know how you feel. The League has forgotten why they have formed in the first place. To protect the innocent. If they're precious laws and publicity are all that's important to them, then they have no right to defend us.

**Blazblade: **Hopefully you know who the actual archer of new york is by now. Also, I'll explain how they operate in the next chapter.

**To everyone who has been asking about Vandal Savage:** Let's just say that History has a lot of holes surrounding Savage. Also, the fact that he's not going to be very popular among some of the servants.

**Guest: **I'll make a list later on.

Till next time!


	4. BloodRed

**Fate/Astraea**

Chapter 3: BloodRed

*Fate/Astraea*

_Antarctica_

"In other Breaking news today, Siegbert Muller Has achieved success in his humanitarian efforts. The children of _Step by Step_ home have a bright future ahead thanks to him."

Sitting in one of the seats in the common room, Jeanne d'Arc watched the news channel at Chaldea Headquarters. Outside of her armor, she wore a dark blue blazer with a small tie and white undershirt. Her mini skirt and thigh high stocks are also dark blue. Amethyst eyes gazed sadly at the figure on screen.

He is a young man with slender-but-hardy body, with eyes a dark red like rubies. The clothing he wore consisted of an open white black vest over a white shirt and a brown suit. Siegbert, as the media called him, stood before a crowd of happy looking orphans.

Her heart ached at the sight of him.

_She knelt on the ground with her arms wrapped around him, her face on the verge of tears. His body is half obliterated, causing him to lose blood fast. Ruby eyes gazed up at her, losing light fast._

_He opened his mouth to speak…_

"Jeanne?"

Jeanne snapped out of her thoughts at the sound of Mash's voice. She turned to see the pinkette standing next to her, a clipboard in her hand. Her face held a concerned expression.

"Mash?" Jeanne stood up. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see if you can help me with our guests," Mash said. She turned to the newsfeed. "Are you still thinking about… him?"

"Yes," Jeanne sadly admitted. Then she felt a hand on her shoulder. Mash gazed at her with a sympathetic smile.

"I know that feeling well," Mash told her. "Are you sure you don't want to…"

"No," Jeanne answered firmly. She shook her head. "It's better that he doesn't get involved with us again. Right now, he has a bright future ahead of him."

The saint didn't want to go through that again.

"Any way," Jeanne smiled. "What do you need my help with?"

"I was thinking that you could escort them to the conference room," Mash said, going with the change of topic. "We have a lot to discuss."

"Agreed."

*Fate/Astraea*

"Woo!" Bart exclaimed as he and the boys exited the hot springs of the medical bay. "His leg is completely healed. "That was refreshing."

"You said it man," Virgil said with enthusiasm. "I haven't tried a hot spring before."

"And I would like to experience it once again," Brion turned to Garfield. "Is it possible to get our own at the Hub?"

"I think I can arrange that," Garfield smirked. "I think Goode World studios will be more than happy to provide it. Who knows? It might come from the _Goodeness _of their heart."

The boys laughed at the pun. Cassie emerged from the girl's section of the springs. By her smile, they can tell she enjoyed the experience as much as them.

"I love the healing properties," She said, flexing her arms. "Not only am I relaxed, I can't feel any of those aching bruises from those androids."

After the mess at Hollywood, Saber told them that they would handle the cleanup. The white uniformed people worked on wiping the people's memories and repairing destroyed buildings. They're going to make it look like a bad storm blew in. Saber took them to a hospital, which turns out to be a front for 'Chaldea'. They teleported somewhere and Saber left them to the medical bay. As for the Riddler, they are told that he will be dealt with by a 'specialist' in prison.

"I'm glad that they're to your liking."

They all turned to a black robed man standing in the area. His face is covered by a hood and a beaked mask, with he only recognizable feature being two braids of white-purple hair. A staff floated in front of him, a black armored snake curled around it.

The man introduced himself as Asclepius. According to Cassie, he is the Greek god of Medicine and Healing. Whether that is his real name or not remains to be seen.

"This is much better than tending to patients," He sighed. "I hate patients. Idiotic patients to be clear."

"This guy would give Dorado a run for his money," Jaime whispered to Bart, who nodded.

"If you are done whispering about my money," Asclepius spoke, causing the two of them to jump. "You can follow your escort."

"Escort?"

"He means me."

Asclepius stepped aside, and every boy felt their jaws hit the ground. A young girl walked into the room, she looked to be about their age. Her blonde hair is tied into a long braid and she wore dark blue clothing. Amethyst eyes scanned them to ensure she had their attention.

"Whoa…" Jaime whispered.

"Check her out…" Virgil muttered in shock.

"Good evening," The girl began. "I hope you've enjoyed your time in the hot springs. We've found it an alternative than listening to our Medical Heads complaints about his patients."

"Hmph," Asclepius crossed his arms in a huff.

"If you would come with me, I will take you to the conference room. We can discuss everything there. Also, my name is Jeanne d'Arc."

*Fate/Astraea*

Jeanne lead the Outsiders throughout Chaldea HQ. Along the way they took in the sights. The hallways are tiled white with rectangular lighting overhead. As they walked, they bumped into more people in those white uniforms going about their business. They saw different clothed men and women as well. A blue garved man with a gold mask walked into a room filled with stone statues. He briefly gave them a glance before heading off to work. Another room had a white-haired woman in a white dress with red at the bottom talking to a teddy bear. Before they could decide if she was crazy, she turned to them and gave them a wave and smile. The boys blushed again before they're pushed along by Cassie.

"We're here," Jeanne spoke after they have arrived at another set of doors, which had the Chaldea logo on them. The doors opened and a woman came out. She wore a dark green and black dress with dark gloves. Her long hair is a mix between dirt blonde and light green with the last foot of her hair so blonde it looked white. What set her apart from the other people they encountered is the lion ears and the tail.

She stopped before Jeanne, surprise replaced with a light glare in her green eyes.

"Ruler."

"Archer of Red."

They stared at each other before Atalanta walked to the side and went on her way. She spared the Outsiders a glance, mostly on Garfield, then continued her way.

"Is it just me, or is every girl here a beauty," Virgil commented. "I mean, first Saber, then Jeanne, and now Atalante?"

"I hate to disappoint you, but Atalante has taken a vow of chastisity," Jeanne turned and entered the doors. "Please follow me."

"I'm sensing something between them," Brion commented.

"Yeah," Garfield agreed. "But we should follow her."

As the Outsiders entered, the doors closed behind them. The conference room had a high ceiling and the wall are strange. But what got their attention was the structure a few feet in front of them. Three rings surrounded a blue holographic globe of the Earth. Outside the rings floated holographic screens. Ac console is set below it.

As Jeanne lead them closer, they got a better look of the screens. Most of them show predictions for natural disasters. Some of them show incidents like the android riot the Riddler unleashed. The word 'Averted' is shown in big green letters.

Behind Jaime's back, the Scarab protruded a limb with a red lens to scan the object.

"Down boy," Jaime lightly scolded the scarab. "I get it is interesting, but the last thing we want to do is get accused of theft."

"That's alright."

Everyone turned their attention to a pink haired lady who walked from around the structure. Her bespectacled eyes face gave a smile of amusement.

"It's not often that we show the CHALDEAS to outsider," She told them. "It's imperative that we keep this secret."

"Secret?" Bart asked. "Why?"

"Because this device allows us to view the past, present, and future of earth," She replied to the astonished looks of the Outsiders. "With this, we can determine where and when the Lights operations would take place. I assume this would answer your question about how we know where to strike, correct?"

"Y-yeah," Brion stammered, still stunned by the fact that they have a machine capable of predicting the future. "While we are on the subject, how accurate is this device."

"As accurate as it goes," Jeanne answered. "But every operation that we foil, it tends to shift to a different timeline. Right now, thanks to out efforts, the light isn't planning anything further for a while."

"Amen to that," Garfield said. Then he glanced at the pinkette. "I'm sorry, but we didn't get your name. Miss…"

"Kyrielight," She bowed. "Mash Kyrielight. I am the acting director for the Chaldea Security Organization. Our organization is formed to protect the future of the reign of humanity."

"The reign of humanity?" Garfield asked. Then he noticed something. "Wait, acting director? Where's the actual director?"

He could tell he hit a sore subject when the girl looked downcast. Mash looked saddened.

"Right now, our director is missing," She somberly spoke. "Ever since we've began operations after the Grand Orders, we haven't seen any trace of him. We're still looking for him, but we…"

She trailed off.

"I'm sorry," Garfield apologized. "I ddin't mean to bring up bad moments. Maybe we could get to that discussion about now."

"Of course," Mash perked up. A smile on her face. "My Senpai said he would be back, so I believe he will be back. No sob stories here."

"Agreed," Jeanne said. "Perhaps we should explain about us first. I should warn you; it's going to be a long story."

"Noted." Garfield nodded. "We've got all day and nothing on our schedule for the moment, so let's roll."

"Okay," Jeanne began. "It all starts with the Holy Grail War…"

*Fate/Astraea*

_While they listen to the history of the grail war…_

_In a prison_

Edward Nigma cowered from the stager in his cell.

The stranger is a little girl with long purple hair that parted from her forehead almost reached the floor. Scantily clad in a stylized loin cloth and a ribbon that covered her chest area, she wore Chinese styled clothing that opened. On her head she wore a golden head gear.

Somehow, fear radiated around her.

"Hello Edward Nigma!" She chirped, holding a book in front of her. "Riddle me this! What time is it?"

"Intimidation time?" Edward squeaked. "Because taking into account—"

"Oh no silly, it's not intimidation time," Edward sighed in relief before she said. "It's TIME for punishment!"

Edward can only cower as a purple aura flared around her.

"What you should hate is not you. It is the sins within you. Our law is the one to draw out all those sins with the scale of pain and anguish! Savor it thoroughly."

The room began to get dark.

"You will not simply rejoice…" She continued. "Know that your luck is truly high! For you shall gaze upon our affair more closely than anyone else! Torture, torture, and even more torture! Nyufufufufufufu~"

*Fate/Astraea*

Jeanne and Mash stood before the astounded Outsiders.

"So, let me get this straight," Garfield slowly said. "You guys are actually the physical manifestations of Heroic Spirits. With Jeanne being THE Joan of Arc? The Maid of Orleans?"

"Yep."

"The spirits of people from heroes of history," Cassie said. "Even gods?"

"Uh huh."

"Normally, you guys are summoned to partake in a Grail War," Brion continued. "Seven of you 'servants' fight to the death and the one left standing gets a wish granted by the Grail."

"Provided that there is one."

"And now that Chaldea won a short war," Bart continued. "The Director, Ritsuka Fujimura, made a wish to summon every servant to fight the Light after they kidnapped his sister. Who then disappeared afterword?"

"That's the story."

No one spoke for a moment. Brion immediately felt sympathy for this Ritsu. He knew what it's like to lose his sister, and he believed that everything he did is justified.

"Why didn't I know of this?!" Bart exclaimed. "I'm from the future!"

"The Mage's Association has been around as long as you can count," Mash answered. "Masking our presence is no issue. We might be on bad terms with them now, but that doesn't mean we can't mask our presence."

"Why?"

"Witch hunts," Jeanne answered. "IF word got out that mages are still around, it will cause chaos. It's more likely that there will be innocent people killed. With the metahuman trafficking, it will give them another product to sell."

"I can see that," Virgil said.

"Wait," Cassie interrupted. "You mean that Asclepius is actually THE Asclepius. The actual God?"

"Yes," Jeanne said. "And the woman that we passed by was Artemis, the goddess of the hunt. Orion was supposed to be summoned, but she hijacked the summoning and took over his identity."

"By Hera!" Cassie exclaimed, clasping her head. "I just met two actual gods here!"

"It's alright, they're not going to lord it over you," Mash told her. "They're actually quite friendly once you get to know him. Just make sure Orion doesn't get close to you, Artemis is known to be jealous."

"Noted," Cassie gulped.

"So, you guys are divided into seven classes," Garfield noted. "Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Assassin, and Berserker."

"Yes, but there have been more classes," Jeanne placed a hand on her chest. "I am Ruler class. In the Grail War, we are called to ensure that it goes according to the rules. In this case, we supervise the teams of seven we send on missions. We have others like Avenger, Foreigner, Alter Ego, Moon Cancer, and in Mash's case Shielder. We use them to mask our true names, because if they know who and what we are, they could figure out our abilities. It's vital that you keep our names to yourselves."

"Of course," Garfield agreed. "Provided that you agree to an alliance."

"Alliance?"

"We know what you're doing against the light," Garfield states. "You've dealt a major blow to the Light with your operations. I can imagine what we can do if we work together. But the issue is about the brutality. We would like you to ease up on the violence and not kill anyone."

"I'm afraid that we can't control all of their actions," Jeanne regrettably told them. "Each of them has their own ideas and beliefs. To ask them to give them up would violate who they are. Not to mention some of them tend to act outside of Chaldea's orders."

"That's unfortunate."

"But we will form an alliance. On the condition that you keep us secret from the league until we feel ready."

"What?" Garfield looked up in surprise.

"You can thank Saber when you see her," Jeanne said. "She said that it was only a matter of time before the Justice League is aware of our presence. Dr. Fate knows of the Mage's Association, so it would be beneficial if we have him on our side in case, they try to hinder our operations. Plus, we need help against the Church as well."

"Isn't the Church supposed to be good?" Jaime asked, then regretted when he saw the dark looks on Jeanne and Mash.

"Let's just say that you are glad you aren't a mage," Mash warned. Then she brightened and extended her hand. "So, shall we be friends?"

"Yes," Garfield took it and shook it. "Let's defeat the light together. We'll also lend a hand to search for your friend."

"Thank you."

"By the way," Bart said. "You said that servants are people from history. Can you tell us Saber's true name? I mean, you know our identities and not to be rude…"

"Don't worry," Mash said. Then she smiled mischievously. "Though you might want to sit down."

*Fate/Astraea*

_Back at the prison_

"No legs have I to dance, no lungs have I to breathe, no life have I to live or die and yet I do all three. What am I?"

"Hmmm…." The purple haired girl muttered, stroking her chin. She and Nigma are currently standing at separate booths. On the screen, a game show host is reciting the riddle. As she took a long and condescending minute to think, Nigma is currently bound like a mummy. His mouth, which uttered muffled screams, is covered with a ball gag. Her booth showed 160 points while his showed 0.

"I think I know…" She brightened, then answered for the one hundred and seventieth time. "I don't know. There is no answer to this riddle."

"CORRECT!" The host announced. Background music and an audience clapped. "Wu Zetian is in the lead with 170 points and Riddler is 0!"

The Riddler's screams intensified, his eyes bulging. Wu Zetian grinned maliciously at the poor man's attempts to answer.

"Don't worry Nigma," She cooed. "There is only seven of these left…. Seven HUNDRED riddles to go!"

She smiled evilly at the screams of Nigma.

*Fate/Astraea*

In the mess hall of Chaldea HQ, Artoria placed her hands together in prayer for the meal she is eating. It's mash potatoes and marinated meat. She grabbed her chopsticks and chowed down. She is dressed in a simple blue skirt and white long-sleeved shirt. An ascot is tied around her collar.

"I see your appetite is as big as ever."

Artoria glanced up to see Archer standing on the other side of her table.

"And I see you are back from your mission," Artoria replied. "How did it go?"

"I had to take care of a pest problem named Abra Kadabra," HE casually shrugged. "I'm not surprise he couldn't magic himself from my sight."

"He is a faux mage after all," Artoria scolded. "You can't expect every magic based villain to actually have magic circuits."

"That's probably thanks to Leonardo," He snarked. "They keep killing every each of them. Like Felix Faust last week."

"Her Noble Phantasm enables her to bypass their defenses. The last thing we needed was their mage's discovering our true nature. Though we are glad that Klarion is still stuck in the tower of fate."

"Yes." Archer agreed. His silver eyes narrowed as a painful memory crossed his mind. The image of a burning city. "Though in my opinion, we should've sent Medea to deal with him permanently. Rule Breaker would've done the job."

"Archer…"

"Anyway, I heard that you've allowed those Outsiders to come to HQ," The nameless servant said to her. "I wonder why? Are you planning on making them Knights of the Round?"

"No," She shook her head. "I figured that we should form an alliance with them. They are fighting the Light as much as we are."

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend," He quoted. "That's what they always say. Though I plan on getting Savage."

"You're not the only one who wants him," She replied. She can already tell that most of the servants here, aside from Avenger class, want his head on a silver platter. Some of them have already plotted ways on how to kill him, most of them grisly.

She faced Archer. Glancing at the facial features, she can already draw similarities between him and another person. The meal she ate reminds her more of him, but it wasn't his cooking. The chefs of Chaldea can never compare to his cooking. Nobody knew the identity of Archer, but she had her reasons to believe that she knew him from that time.

"Archer…" She began. Then she felt a presence from behind her. She turned around to see the Outsiders standing behind her, with their mouth's opened in shock.

"Hello…" She waved her hand. "May I help you?"

"YOU'RE KING ARTHUR?!" They exclaimed.

"Yes," She nodded. "I am Artoria Pendragon. King of Camelot and leader of the Knights of the Round Table. Through out history, I'm referred to as the King of Knights."

"But you're a girl!" The boys exclaimed.

Artoria sighed. She already expected this kind of reaction. "Let me be the first to tell you this. History isn't known for its accuracy. I have myself to blame for concealing my true gender, which lead to terrible events that contribute to the fall of my kingdom."

"You mean Mordred and Morgan Le Fay?" Brion asked. "Don't tell me…. How is that…."

"I'll let her tell the story," Artoria's gaze hardened at the memory. "I'll warn you beforehand not to address her as a woman. She's known to go berserk when that happens."

"Well I'm not complaining!" Cassie happily sat down next to her. "I find it neat to see that the King Arthur is another girl! The rest of the guys are going to flip when they hear this!"

"Well I leave you fan club to you then," Archer stood up and walked away from the table.

"Archer," Artoria groused after him. AS he approached the door, it opened to admit another pink haired girl in white armor and black skirt.

"HEY ARTORIA!" The person dashed toward Artoria's table. "I heard that we have new friends! Can I join in?"

"Sure," Artoria nodded. She turned to the Outsiders. "Everyone, this is—"

"Oh, let me introduce myself!" She interrupted. Clearing her throat, she spoke. "I am Astolfo, I'm one of the twelve paladins of Charlemagne."

"Astolfo?" Brion asked. "You're a girl as well?"

"I'll be the first to tell you," Artoria interrupted. "SHE is actually a HE."

"WHAT?!"

"He, he, he," Astolfo chuckled nervously. "I might and might not. I don't exactly remember. You should ask Jeanne. Her face and scream when she found out is priceless."

"So why are you wearing a skirt?" Jaime asked. "I mean, I get that you don't remember, but why not wear pants?"

"You sound like Charlie!" Astolfo huffed, puffing his cheeks. Then deflated with a sad expression.

"Is something wrong?" Cassie asked.

"Oh nothing," He waved his hands. "Just some bad memories popped up that's all! Anyway, your Beast Boy correct?"

"Y-yeah?" Garfield stammered at the guys exuberant personality.

"Is it true that you can turn into any animal you see?" When he nodded carefully, Astolfo smiled more. "Then can you turn into a Hippogriff?"

"A hippogriff?" He asked. "Like the one in movies or—"

Astolfo responded by bringing his fingers to his lips and whistling. In a flash, a winged beast appeared. Its front is that of an eagle with hindquarters of a horse.

"This is my ride!" Astolfo mounted it. "Everyone Meet Hippogriff!"

Then, they blinked out of existence. A second later, they heard a crash at the other end of the mess hall.

"Astolfo," Artoria said sternly. "We aren't allowed to use our Noble Phantasms at HQ. Provided that there is an emergency."

"Hee-hee" Astolfo bashfully scratched the back of his head. "Sorry, the big guy must have meant to shift on accident. So, can you try?"

"I think I can," Garfield said in uncertainty. While they are messing around with Garfield's powers, the rest of the Outsiders sat at the table with Artoria.

"So are the rest of the Knights girls?" Bart asked.

"Oh, don't worry," She assured them. "As far as I'm concerned, we've only had Mordred and Gareth. The rest as you see it."

"Quick question," Jaime cut in. "What are Noble Phantasms? You mentioned you guys aren't allowed to use them at HQ. Are they like, your powers?"

"I suppose I can explain," She stood up and addressed them. "Noble Phantasms are the embodiment of the ultimate mysteries of a hero that symbolizes our existence through history. They can be anything such as physical object and abstract concepts. In the Grail War, they are the trump cards that allow us to overcome others in battle. Now, we have to limit ourselves before we cause unnecessary destruction."

She reached out her hand. A flash of light, and a golden sword appeared in her hand.

"In my case, the Noble Phantasm I wield is the sword of promised victory – Excalibur. As you remember from yesterday."

The scarab peered over Jaime's shoulder to take a better look at the sword.

"Impressive," Cassie breathed as she looked at the blade of Excalibur. Then she realized something. "Why are you showing us this? Jeanne and Mash told us that you guys keep your identities secret because it will be disastrous."

Artoria dismissed Excalibur. "You guys don't seem to be the type that wouldn't harm anyone for their benefit. In my eyes, you can be trusted. That and Garfield managed to turn into a hippogriff."

She pointed to where Garfield and Astolfo are at. There are currently two hippogriffs, one of which is green. Astolfo clapped his hand excitedly.

"I'm curious if he can turn into the other Rider's mounts," She pondered when suddenly the doors opened again.

"Artoria!" A gigantic red-bearded man bellowed. He had large muscles that give them the impression that he can kill a lion bare handed. Bronze armor with white-furred fringes covered his body except for his head, arms, and thighs. A thick red mantle with a fluffy white collar covered him. He strode over to Artoria's table.

"Hello Iskandar," She greeted. "Everyone, this is Iskandar. Known as the King of Conquerors. You might know him as Alexander the Great."

"Indeed!" He grinned, then wrapped the Outsiders into a big embrace. "It is a pleasure to meet the young heroes of a bright generation!"

Everyone struggled in his embrace, turning blue. After he finally let them go, they gasped for breath.

Artoria smiled at this development. Things might be turning bright after all.

*Fate/Astraea*

_Hollywood_

A lone figure walked through the ruins of Riddler's temporary base. Just like before, it's been cleaned thoroughly, not a single trace of the battle that happened.

But that's where they are wrong.

The figure approached the console where Nigma operated. Taking out a sword, he slashed at the console. It broke apart and fell, revealing the circuitry. He reached in and pulled out a thumb drive hidden within.

"they're so focused on the outside they didn't seem to notice what could be in," Slade Wilson muttered. He inserted the drive into his gauntlet, and a holographic interface emerged. He opened a file and photos appeared. He zoomed in on several of them, focusing on the figures on them.

"Now then. Let's find out who you are.

*Fate/Astraea*

"Master?"

The hood woke up from his seat onboard a plane. He turned to his companion. Sitting at the window is a tanned girl with white hair tied with a black ribbon. A diamond patter is in the longest part of her hair. She wore red sunglasses with a similar tinted glass. Her body is clad in a black one-piece dress. In her hand is a treat shaped like a dragon.

"We're approaching our destination," She said, pointing to the seatbelt sign.

"Thanks Altera," The hood grabbed his seatbelt and buckled it. "That was uncool of me."

"How's a seatbelt supposed to be cool?" Altera tilted her head.

"Because it prevents people from dying in a crash," He answered. "Though in a planes case, it helps us deal with the turbulence. It's pretty cool that we get to ride in one of these though."

"Is that why you didn't want to use your Charles Patricius?" Altera asked bluntly.

"Sister," The hood sighed and reached for his blue hood. Dragging it down, it revealed his young features. Blue eyes gazed at Altera from behind black and white hair with a happy look. "You have to get a chance to experience new things. It's cool. Did you know back at the states, they have these things called carnivals? It's like an open festival where anyone can attend. Even though the carneys will swindle you out of prizes, there are still fun rides."

"Really?" Altera asked.

"You want to go to one?"

Altera brought a finger to her lip. She considered it for a moment, then brought it down.

"OK, if that is your command master."

"It's not a command," The hood said sternly. "Also stop calling me master. You are my sister, and that will never change. I'm asking for your opinion. It's your choice if you want to go or not."

They were silent for a moment. The hood sighed.

"Getting angry like that isn't cool," He said. "But all I want is for you to be happy sister."

Altera looked at him with a still neutral expression. She opened her mouth to speak before the intercom came to life.

_Attention all passengers. We have a situation on the ground. Radicals have taken over the landing zone, so our flight will be delayed._

The passengers looked at each other and began to speak. Panic in their voice. The only one's who remained calm are the brother and sister.

"Most likely, they are Remnants of Queen Bee's soldiers," Altera spoke.

"Yep. And they are still sore about the fact that they lost their rights," The hood stood up and walked out the aisle. "Stay, here. I'll go deal with them."

He felt his hand grabbed by hers. Surprised, he looked back at her.

"I'm going…uhh…"

The hood smiled. "Just call me either Charles, Charlie, or Chuck. Whichever you prefer."

"Chuck," Altera smiled. "How much wood can a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood."

Chuck grinned. "Now that's a good one. Come on then."

He and Altera got up from their seats and grabbed their luggage overhead. Then, they walked all the way to the back of the plane, ignoring the looks of surprise on the other passengers. Fortunately for them, they have the sense to buckle their seatbelts.

As they approached the back of the plan, an attendant stepped in.

"I'm sorry sir, but you need to go back and buckle in your seatbelt."

"Ma'am," Chuck held up a hand. "You might want to get back to your seat."

"What?"

Chuck pulled something out of his pocket and opened a vial. Smoke drifted from it and into the nostrils of the flight attendant. Her eyelids grew heavy and she fell into Chucks arms. He set her on the seat and strapped her in.

"Well, come on then," He opened the door to the hangar and gestured Altera to go first. He followed afterward. After making sure it was locked, he closed the door. He walked over to a wall and pressed the button on the control board.

Slowly, the bay doors opened, the wind rushing out. Thankfully, some of the luggage is held in place. Chuck joined Altera and stood beside her.

"OK sister, here's how it goes," Chuck said over the wind. "Right now, these Radical's have taken over the airport, which means they have hostages. So, we are going to have to move fast. Oh, and try to avoid any serious damage and avoid killing them. They are only cowards. Not warriors like those we've faced back in our days."

"Understood," Altera nodded. "Can we make a bet?"

"Sure, I don't see why not," Chuck replied, grinning. Already, his sister is changing. "So, what is the bet?"

"If I get the most radicals, you have to take someone out."

"Wait, WHAT?" He shouted, but it was too late. Altera had already dashed out and jumped off the ramp. Chuck walked over to the edge and peered below. A flash of light implied that she has already changed out of her travelling clothes.

"That was uncool," He groaned. But he replaced the frown with a grin. "But jumping out of the plane and engaging enemies from the sky to save the day is WAY cooler!"

With that, he leaped off the ramp and hurtled after his sister.

*Fate/Astraea*

_Orphanage._

Several guards escorted the latest batch of metahumans through a boom tube.

"That's the last of them," One said.

"Maybe we can finally get a break?" Another asked.

"With the ruckus that's been happening, that might happen."

"Why?"

"You haven't heard? Somebody is out to get us and it isn't the Justice League. I heard that it was ghosts?"

"Ghosts?"

"Yeah, they just appear and vanish. No trace was ever found of them. Like they weren't even there."

"Looks like I made the right choice to be on Orphanage duty."

"Yeah, this might be the only safe place for us left until the higher ups deal with them."

As soon as they're gone, another figure appeared. Though it was through materialization than a boom tube. It is a gray-haired man wearing a dark suit, black as nightmare with a similar colored hat. Tied under the collar of his white shirt is the longest red tie anyone has seen, held in place by a golden slider. Red eyes gazed after the men with malice.

"I'm in," He spoke with a tone that meant no good for anyone.

Who could blame anyone for the nightmare they have unknowingly brought upon the Orphanage.

*Fate/Astraea*

**I know it has been long, so here's another post. Though I am hyped for the next season of Young Justice. I'm disappointed that Geo-Force walked the darkside, I definitely felt what Obi Wan felt when Anikan did the same. **

**Regarding Luthor, I did some thinking and I realized something. Why fight someone with a positive appearance with negativity. Two wrongs don't make a right. So Chaldea is fighting Luthor with positivity. Just like he voluntarily converted his mansion into a racoon sanctuary.**

**See you next time!**

**In honor of Season 4: LONG LIVE THE LEGION!**


	5. To the readers

_Dear Readers,_

_I regret to inform you that I'm discontinuing this story as I have lost interest. I'm sure you are giving the same reaction that you give to other writers who have done this shit in the past, for that I'm deeply sorry. I pretty much love doing this while the excitement was in the air. But every time I try to write a new chapter, my head becomes a mess and messes it up in return. Not to mention there are other stories that have been written. Which brings me to my offer of this story._

_Starting today, I'm putting this Story up for adoption. Anyone who wants this story to live on can take over. All you have to do is send me an email and I'll consent. I have a feeling that any of you can do a better job than I could ever have done. I'll be really happy that they can do so much better than I._

_With All Due Respect,_

_I am the Prophet._

_P.S. As for Ritsuka Fujimaru's whereabouts, I'll give you a hint. In FGO, there is one extella servant that is unaccounted for. Find Him._


	6. To the readers 2

Good news, Darkwarriorthecursedhero has adopted my story. If you want to see more, that's the guy you want to look for on the search engine. Please look forward to the next chapter they write.

With all due respect,

I am the Prophet


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